The Town

The Revelation of Jesus Christ can be one of the most confusing New Testament letters to understand in our current context. And yet, the blessing of the book comes to those who hear the words and understand them. Revelation is not meant to confuse us but rather encourage us in trials, engage is in urgent mission and enrapture us with the coming King.

The marriage union is a blessing given by God from the very beginning of creation, and it has also taken on important redemptive elements in light of the fall of humanity. It should not be missed that our marriages are meant to be mirrors reflecting something much more than simply living out our lives with another person. The Church is the Bride of Christ, and our marriages should make a declaration about our union with him. And in the marriage analogy, we also catch a glimpse of the ultimate marriage to come: when Christ's preparations are complete, his Bride is made perfect, and all the saints celebrate together at the wedding supper of the Lamb.

We spend so much time, money and effort on the first day of our marriage. But what about the last day? What will your marriage become and how will you impact one another. The last day is not a promise of a once and for all, one time victory. It is a race in which we must continually strive and pres on toward the goal. Our priority must be the priorities of God. Our Goal must be the goals God has for us. Our vision for the last day, with Jesus at the center will help us to press on toward that day.

God loves sex and wants you to enjoy sexual intimacy. Sex is something many Christians do not talk about in their churches. But it is a revelatory gift that God wants us to talk about. It is not something to be hidden away. Sex is either ruling us, repulsing us or reminding us of the greatness of a loving and gracious God who wants us to know and be known. When sex is ruling us or we are repulsed by the thought of it, it will become a war in our love life. But when we understand that God loves sex and wants us to enjoy sexual intimacy in the context of marriage we learn how to make love not a war.

God's preferred method of revelation has always been His Word. His Word is how we can know him intimately. The Apple has not fallen far from the tree. God has given his creatures the ability to speak to one another that we might know one another more intimately. The Bible gives us specific instruction on how to talk to one another in a Christ like way that can breathe life.

Every marriage will end. Will your marriage end with a full heart or a hard heart. God's design for marriage guarantees that at the end of our marriage, until death, that we will come to the finish line with a full heart.

Expectations are a strong mental image which we often associate with hope, future joy or fulfillment. Yet our expectations fail us because we were made for so much more than the broken offerings of this world. Jesus has given us the greatest expectation by his word and backed up by the power of God. Our expectations are either grounded in God's Word or they will fall short and break our hearts.

We know that the Christian life is filled with times of both exhaustion and complacency, but we also know that Jesus has secured for us an ultimate victory that cannot be taken away. Thus, our journey becomes a victorious one. This isn't just about positive thinking; it's recognizing that God is guarding both our inheritance (heaven and perfect communion with him) and our souls. We will persevere to the end not because we become more disciplined people, but because God has promised that he will complete the work he has started in us (Phil. 1:6). That should make a difference in the way we sojourn through this world.

As Christians we can often fall into spiritual routines that allow us to become complacent to the Christian life we are called to live. We think we have it all together and don't realize how desperately we daily need the Word of God until our lives have been put into a tailspin. In this sermon we look at some of the ways God has called us out of spiritual complacency in Romans 12:9-21.

Spiritual exhaustion happens to all of us. The reasons for it can vary but it is most likely that we have begun to look for joy in all the wrong places. Joseph's brothers were exhausted with guilt and shame. They were sorry for the evil they had caused Joseph but were under such guilt and shame that they believed Joseph would condemn them to slavery or worse. We often approach God in the same way. Our shame, guilt, or the evils done to us weigh us down and we try to please God on our own. But Jesus has offered us rest from this kind of religion.

Your legacy is not defined by the amount of people you know or the amount of years you live. Your legacy is defined by your character, your message, and your love. Our character, message, and love is defined by the gods that we serve.

What hope do we have when evil seems to thwart the goodness of God? Can there be true light in darkness? The Bible teaches that God is sovereign and good even over the evil acts of men. But this is not just a lofty doctrine that we know is true. This doctrine affects the way in which we live and the way in which we go about our mission.

Not many of us will have a biography written about us. But we still should consider the question, what will I be remembered for? Judah's story is filled with moral failure and short comings, but by the grace of God, he made progress. His biography is about progress. We too, after we are declared righteous in His sight and by the power of the Holy Spirit in us, ought to strive for progress!

Easter cannot be toned down. It is a celebration of facts. These facts changed the future and hope of humanity. It is in these facts, in this defiant declaration of the resurrection that we have any hope at all.

Joseph was living in 2 Kingdoms but he never lost sight that he was a citizen of one. His name would be remembered not by his power in Egypt but by God's power working in him. What is in our name? Where is our identity? Like Joseph, our identity comes from where we hold our citizenship - of which Kingdom are you a citizen? The world or the Kingdom of God?

The temptation to sin is relentless. By default, the human condition is predisposed to protect, gratify and preserve self. But Jesus offers a better way to live in the Kingdom. In the story of Joseph we learn essential principles about how one can resist temptation.

There are times in our lives when we just don't understand what God is doing. We can only see a few things when God is really up to millions of things. He is always moving us toward redemption. God is always watching us, always working in us, and will ultimately win us for Himself.

There are so many things and so many reasons that call us to hold onto this world and to find our joy in the here and now. The message of the world is to find peace and joy in the finite and broken things that this world has to offer. But the message of the Bible is that God has something so much greater for us in mind. The only way to obtain what God is freely giving is to strive for the narrow door of the Kingdom. The striving is a letting go of the call of the world and holding on to the call of the Gospel.