Sermon Archive

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Judge not. Perhaps the most quoted (and misused) verse in all of scripture. Far from conveying a sense of neutrality to sin and morality, Jesus gives us clear instructions on how to address the sin in our lives and others lives. The command to avoid judgement is accompanied by the command to help others. How do we balance these tensions?

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Our culture provides no shortage of reasons for us to worry. From world news and local crime to facebook and pinterest, we are bombarded with evidence for our anxieties. Couple that with the legitimate things in our life that powerfully play on our fears, and our lives are a factory for worry. So how do we live worry free in a culture set up to make us worry? What if you feel like your a laid back person and worry is a problem for someone else? Jesus shows us that none of us can escape dealing with this issue.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Jesus is constantly reminding his disciples that there is more to life than what we see in this world. Yet so often we are distracted and captivated by the stuff of earth. What is it that gets our hearts and how do we fight to stay focused on the kingdom? Justin helps us see that central to the Kingdom of God is the reality that we aren’t the center of it.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Prayer is a powerful thing that has somehow become an awkward thing for most Christians. Many Christians feel like prayer is something that they should know how to do, but they just don’t feel adequate. Jesus gives us the model prayer in Matthew 6 and in doing so shows us just what prayer is for- and it begins with the glory of God.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Jesus continues his assault on the checklist religion. Now he shifts from morality to religion and tells his disciples that pretending won’t cut it in the new kingdom. Instead, perfection is the goal and the heart is what matters.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Turn the other cheek. Go the extra mile. Give to those in need. Love your enemies. All things we’ve heard before, but they were revolutionary when Jesus taught them. Today they are no less difficult. Why would Jesus tell us to love our enemies? What’s the point? Doesn’t that just make us a doormat? What’s really at stake is not our egos, but the gospel. (To see the video used in this sermon go here. )

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

To say that marriage is under assault in American culture today would be an understatement. How did we get to this point? Why is it such a big deal anyway? Isn’t it just a declaration that two people like each other? Jesus’s teaching in the Sermon on the Mount highlights the importance and the permanence of the marriage covenant. His teaching challenged the purpose and meaning of marriage then, just as it does now.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Jesus teaching in the Sermon on the Mount confronts us at every turn. There’s no escaping the universal truth that Jesus puts before us. As he teaches, he shows us the nature of sin and, in turn, the nature of our own heart and the power of God. Sin is a powerful foe that relentlessly attacks us. Our priority is to fight it with all we have and to trust the one that has ultimately defeated sin and Satan.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Inside out- that’s the essence of Jesus message in the Sermon on the Mount. Checking boxes and looking like a good guy just isn’t enough. Jesus begins the process of tearing down the external religion built by the pharisees and showing us that God demands more. It’s challenging teaching, but it’s the heart of holiness. Jesus wants us to see just what it means to live in his kingdom.

Easter WP 2

Easter is the day that changed the world. When Jesus walked out of the tomb, he accomplished more than we can ever fully understand. What we do know is that his crucifixion and resurrection were the picture of a kingdom that is both victorious and unexpected.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

 

There is no greater example of how unexpected this kingdom is than the events of Palm Sunday and the week that follows. A beautiful picture of how Christ fulfills the law in perfection, Palm Sunday shows us the King on the way to take his throne—it’s just not the throne we’d expect.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

The Gospel According to Matthew sounds so familiar, but there’s nothing expected about the man writing this book. Being a tax collector made him an odd choice to join a group of other Jews and certainly wouldn’t be the first choice for his moral choices. So what does Matthew’s story tell us about our own lives? How can we learn the power of grace and redemption from Matthew’s own story? Al Lang teaches us that there’s a powerful story behind the one writing the story.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

 

Jesus teaches us that his role here on earth was not to abolish, but to fulfill the Old Testament. What did he mean by that? Does this mean that we are to practice everything in the OT? If not, then what did Jesus have in mind? It’s the difference between shadows and substance.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

Two simple word pictures provide us with a clear mission and some important warnings. What do two common things like salt and light have to do with eternity? What is the Christian’s role in the world? Should we run and hide? Dive right in? Try to play both sides? Jesus gives us a clear mandate that shows the reality that we have a dual citizenship, but only one ultimate allegiance.

Kingdom Come Unexpected Kingdom

The Sermon on the Mount is some of the most profound teaching the world has ever known. What makes these lessons so powerful? Jesus begins with the beatitudes which set the stage for everything else that follows. Listen to find the heart of this teaching that is so life-giving and completely unexpected.

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