Past Sermons
Revisit these past sermons by Pastor Mike when you need to refresh or reflect on your lives and times.
Sermon Series beginning March 16, 2008
Why Jesus?
This sermon series looks at the reasons and resources that convince us that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. This is a good series for those who do not understand why we put our lives in his hands.
A King Like No Other
Excerpt: What the people didn’t know was that Jesus came to be a king like no other king. He came to liberate them, but not like any other king had ever done it. Not by raising armies. Not by amassing great wealth. Not by setting up a police state ruling through fear. Not by making political alliances. No, he is a king of a much different stripe. He enters Jerusalem knowing that the only path to peace and prosperity is through his death and resurrection. Jesus knows that what is needed is a spiritual solution. What is needed is an act so bold and so overwhelming that it turns hearts to God and steers life in a new direction.
A Love Like No Other
Excerpt: I wouldn’t be here if it didn’t matter. I wouldn’t be here if it didn’t somehow make a difference in my life. If I didn’t somehow believe that in the cross a new power is unleashed, a new door opened, a new light shining in the darkness. And that light is the love of Jesus that burns in my heart. A Good Friday love. A love like no other. To make me more loving. To love as he loved me. To make a difference in the world.
A Power Like No Other
Excerpt: Resurrection means the door is open. Jesus is a power like no other. The power is the power to get us out of our tombs, the power to cause us to walk through doors that we have cowered behind for too long, the power to turn us into courageous white-hot servants of Jesus. To go where he wants us to go. To send us running to tell others and to work for the healing and peace of the world.
A Presence Like No Other
Excerpt: So, why Jesus? Why do I stick with him? Here is the short answer: Because He is unlike anyone else who has ever lived. And if he is who the Bible says he is, then I would be foolish to ignore him. But how can I ignore him when he is a Presence like no other?
March 2008 series
Living Water for Times Such as These
As a congregation we have adopted the phrase Peace. Purpose. Promise. as our core message. This sermon series speaks to that core message.
Peace That Passes Understanding
Excerpt: The root of Biblical peace - a peace that is true and lasting and creates positive energy for resolving conflicts - is a radical confidence and trust in God. In Jeremiah 26:3, the prophet says to God, Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace--in peace because they trust in you.
Finding Your Purpose
Excerpt: I happen to agree with Rick Warren in The Purpose Driven Life. “It is not about us.” It is about God. Our purpose comes from God. We cannot create a big enough purpose to sustain our lives, one that calls forth the enormous potential God sees in each of us. We get in trouble when we try. Worship helps us keep our eye on the One who keeps His eye on us.
Promises, Promises
Excerpt: What we are saying is that promise is one of the three most important things we experience with Jesus Christ that others cannot live without. Not the promises we make, but the promises God makes. We want people to know that in Jesus: We receive promises that will never be broken. . .Promises we can count on, forever!. . .Big promises. Important promises. Eternal promises. And in these promises, we experience hope. We live in hope.
January/February Sermons
Sermon Three
Excerpt: Peter went through a three year period of discernment with Jesus before he was ready to realize his potential. He had to learn what I have had to learn over and over in my lifetime. It is not about me. It is not about what I want or what I like. It is about what Jesus wants. I discover what Jesus wants through study of the Bible. And then it is about discerning what Jesus sees in me and wants of me. This is where the rubber meets the road. This is the hard part where many Christians stop growing.
Sermon Four
Excerpt: We may decide to follow Jesus. We may discover what he came to do and what he wants from us. We may even discern our gifts and calling. But until we are ready to tackle the tough challenge of keeping our eyes on him alone and overcoming our fear, there will be very little to write home about. We will sink into the stormy seas of this tempestuous life we live. Or worse, we will drown our potential and someone whose life we could have touched, whose heart we could have opened to all their potential, goes wanting.
Sermon Five
Excerpt: Discipleship reverses all that. Growing disciples never see the glass half-empty. Neither do they see it half-full. It is always overflowing. They never speak of what little they can do. They always marvel at how much God has given them. If God calls them to action, it is always in the faith that God will provide the way and means. Instead of compartmentalizing their lives, they begin to see that every compartment belongs to God. Some need to be scrubbed. Others need to grow. But the bottom line is that they begin to live a life of integrity and purpose that go far beyond just making a living or providing for my family.