Sermon Archive

Throughout the book of Exodus, we can see the repeated, relentless declaration of a God that would have no rivals. From His declaration of “I am” to the unveiling of a veiled part of His glory to Moses, God makes Himself known. What we see is a God that comes to dwell among His people and a God that demands unquestioned allegiance from them. He will be supreme in the lives of His people and in the battle for supremacy among His enemies.

It is one thing to make a bold request before God. It’s another to have that request answered, and then to continue to make even bolder requests. That doesn’t stop Moses from asking though. His request is that God would “show him His glory.” God grants the request and leaves Moses to go back to the people of Israel with a face shining so bright he has to wear a veil. This story seems removed from us today, but Paul would make it clear that Moses’s shining face has much to teach us about the Old Covenant, the New Covenant, and the grace of God in Jesus Christ.

Moses and the people of Israel finally got to hear what they’d been waiting on. It was time to move on and claim what God had promised, but with one caveat- God wasn’t coming with them. It’s hard to imagine having everything you’ve ever wanted right in front of you and then walking away, but that’s exactly what Moses was prepared to do. He knew the land didn’t make them distinct people; only God could do that. How does that play out for us? How often do we take the stuff, but forget God in the process? Are we any different than the world? Are we “distinct”?

Worship is a universal language. We ALL worship, but what drives our worship? For some, our minds drive our emotions in worship. For others, our emotions help us engage our minds. Sometimes though (maybe often) our worship doesn’t follow what seems to make the most sense. Our minds tell us God is good and worthy, but our hearts run to other idols. Why does that happen and what do we do when it does?

A little over 500 years ago, the world was shaken by the Protestant Reformation. The driving factors for the Reformation were varied culturally and theologically, however central to the thought of the reformers was the abuses and inconsistencies of the priesthood in the Catholic Church. What is it about the role of the priests that the reformers took issue with? How does that relate to the Old Testament priests? We look at the doctrine of the priesthood, Jesus’s role, and our own role as priests.

Detailed instructions about the tabernacle can be boring to read and hard to understand. But the tabernacle represented a gracious work by God- to create a place where He could be in the midst of His people. The tabernacle was to travel everywhere with Israel and create this place for God’s presence. But even with the creation of the tabernacle, separation still marked God and his people. Until the New Testament, when some of the very elements of the tabernacle were torn in two, and now the separation has been replaced by something extraordinary. Not only is God among us, He is found within us.

The Bible is not a collection of loosely related stories and heroic acts by Godly people. Instead, it is telling many stories that weave together to tell one large story. The biggest theme in the Bible that ties it all together is the idea of covenant. Time and time again we see the picture of God coming to man and establishing a covenant. Why does this matter to us? What do the covenants teach us about how God acts and who He is? Why do we see this idea repeated so many times in so many ways?

When it comes to various laws in the Old Testament, people have many reactions. Some Christians want to carry them over to today while others are embarrassed to even read them, let alone enforce them. Non-Christians are quick to point out inconsistency and the archaic nature of these laws as evidence that society has left Christianity behind. Just what are we to make of these laws and what do they teach us about God’s nature and His plan? Answering these questions is something Christians must get right if we want to avoid being dismissed by our culture and if we want to be sure we are truly living in obedience to God.

Early bird gets the worm. Rolling stone gathers no moss. Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. Such is the prevailing wisdom of our culture. A good work ethic is often thought of as the mark a good person. Even as Christians, we celebrate this trait—and we are right to celebrate this. So why is it that God calls us to a day when we forgo all of that and instead do the opposite? The Sabbath is designed to be a time where we intentionally rest or minds and bodies, recognize our creator and His design, and remember what He has done? Is that what your Sabbath looks like?

When obedience is only about “trying hard enough.” We can usually make ourselves do whatever needs to be done, especially if the reward is big enough. When it comes to following God’s commands about loving others, we find that we just can’t seem to try hard enough. What is it that makes God’s law so hard for us to keep? It all comes back to our hearts. Our problem isn’t just our external failure, it’s our internal desires.

In the giving of the ten commandments, God establishes a framework for His relationship with us that asserts both his authority and his expectations. Through those commands, God graciously shows us a path forward that removes us from being our own authority of our life. In doing so, God is not removing our path to happiness, but showing us where true joy is found.

The Ten Commandments are some of the most well-known pieces of scripture in the world. They are displayed, debated, and dismissed, but what role do they play in our lives today? Are they absolute authority or irrelevant and archaic? Much more than a list of rules, the Ten Commandments reveal our hearts and the nature of God himself. Our obedience (or lack there of) reveal our nature too.

It can be easy for religion to be nothing more than a list of to do’s. If you do them God will be satisfied, but woe to us if we come up short. While obedience is a part of the Christian life, it may not fit where you think it does. Because obedience isn’t the ticket to God’s goodness, it’s the response to it- and that makes all the difference.