Sermons from September 2018
Your Name and Your Kingdom
Matt 6:9-10
We are journeying through the Lord’s Prayer together, and this week we explore the first two petitions: “hallowed be your name” and “your kingdom come.” Over against babbling like pagans, Jesus teaches us to “pray like this” (6:9): address our Father in heaven, then pray these two petitions. Apparently he thought it vitally important to hallow the Father’s name and pray for his kingdom to come. But, what are we actually praying in these two petitions? I invite you to come Sunday as we explore this text together.
The Lord’s Prayer
Matthew 6:7-15 In the Sermon on the Mount, in the middle of Jesus’ instruction on the Spiritual Disciplines, he gives extra teaching on prayer. He says that we are not to mindlessly babble in prayer, instead we are to pray simply and shortly, the model being the Lord’s Prayer.
Authentic Devotion
Matt 6:1-6, 16-18
After our summer in the Parables, we now enter back into the Sermon on the Mount, Living Right-side Up in an Upside-down World. In our text for this week, Jesus protects the spiritual disciplines. Why? Because the spiritual disciplines nurture our relationship to God and nurture life in his kingdom. Jesus assumes we will do them, but his focus is on our motivation. Are we motivated to do them to be seen by people (others or ourselves), or are we motivated to do them “authentically” to be seen by God?
Extravagant Love
Luke 15
This Sunday we will bring our summer series on the Parables to a close with the familiar story of two sons and their father. Jesus adds unexpected twists to the story of this usual Jewish home, leaving those of us with eyes to see and ears to hear quite unsettled. Join us this Sunday as we explore the extravagant love of a father for both of his sons: one, a wayward sinner, the other, a self-declared hard-working… slave. Pray that the Spirit will use this well-known story to open your eyes and ears in unexpected ways to the extravagance of God’s love for you… and for those around you!!
Parable of the Talents
Matt 25:14-30
What does “living a good life” mean to you? Is a “good life” measured by success, wealth, or status? In the kingdom of God, a “good life” is one that matters for God, one with eternal significance. This coming Sunday, let’s explore together how to diligently live our lives to yield a good “return on investment” for God’s kingdom; our text will be on the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25.