Brooklyn Tabernacle - Audio Sermons Feed

God has the power to fulfill every single promise He’s made, like when He kept His promise to send us a Savior. And He wants us to celebrate that power. We’re already celebrating during this Christmas season, right? So let’s give God a gift. Yes—we can give the Almighty a present! When we trust Him and pour out our hearts to Him, God is so pleased. Let’s try that today.

Your story might include pain—but it can bless someone else! In our prayer meeting tonight, Dan Smither shared how God used an injury from college to help him reach the Zulu people in South Africa. With him, the Key of Hope Children’s Choir, directed by Dan's wife, Rachel, belts out a joyful message of hope and faith in God. Let’s stop hiding our scars and start sharing our proof of God’s goodness!

Most of us associate Christmas with presents. We give and get them all season long. But in the hustle and bustle of the holidays, we often forget about the real gift: Jesus Christ. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, who saved us from an eternity without God, should be center stage. Let us praise Him for His amazing gift!

We often want to call out people who wrong us. Think about how Joseph must have felt when he found out his fiancée, Mary, was pregnant! He could have ruined her reputation, but he cared for her. Together they raised the Son of God. Love cares for and protects others. Let’s practice that this Christmas season.

While Jesus is the most famous person ever to live on this earth, there must be more clarity about who He is. Our family, friends, and world deserve to know that no one can change a life like Jesus Christ.

Did you know that we will get rewards in heaven? That’s not to say that we have to earn our salvation or buy our way out of purgatory. Rather, knowing that we will be rewarded is an incentive for us to bless others. Let’s reflect Jesus’s love today.

We like neutrality—a fence to sit on or a line to toe. But Jesus said, “Whoever is not against us is for us.” In other words, either we are all in for Jesus, or we are totally out. There is no neutrality with God. Let’s be all in for Him!

Our world is so divided. But you know what else is divided? The church. The Bible talks about something called a party spirit, and it is detrimental to the body of Christ. A party spirit is all about division—cliques, groups, teams. We need to be kingdom-minded churches. We should root for all Christians everywhere, not just those who think like we do.

We can get so caught up in our circumstances that we begin to look for help anywhere but God. Every day we must be in Jesus’ presence. When we return to Him, everything falls into place, and we receive what we need. The Christian faith is not about fixing ourselves—it's about coming to the Lord. Today let’s listen to the conviction He’s placing on our hearts. Let’s return to Jesus.

We are saved by faith, not by works. Yet we are still called by God to do good deeds. Jesus set us an example by welcoming little children. He taught His disciples that there are heavenly rewards for those who do good to others. How can you bless someone today?

Remember when we were children, and our biggest concern was who we’d play with at recess? Now we’ve seen and heard so much that we overcomplicate things as simple as trusting God. We need childlike faith today. Let’s just love and trust our Jesus.

Many Christians today shy away from the Holy Spirit, often because of excesses they have seen in the Spirit's name. But we need the Holy Spirit! The Bible describes Him in many ways—the Spirit of God's Son (Galatians 4:6), the "Spirit of counsel and strength" (Isaiah 11:2), and a Spirit of love (2 Timothy 1:7). Let's open our hearts to the Holy Spirit. We'll find that He provides the best help we could ever ask for!

Who is greater, the person ordering food or the waiter? Well, in God’s eyes, whoever is serving is greater than who’s being served. In other words, God doesn’t have favorites—He just wants us to help others. Jesus was the ultimate example of a leader who served. In His name, let’s be servants of God today.

We can’t always see what the Lord is doing, and that scares us. We want to know the who, where, and when. But that’s not how God works! The more we move away from the simplicity of childlike faith, the farther away we move from the power and blessings of God. Let’s step out in faith today and trust the Lord’s plan.

Sometimes we go through hardships and wonder if our faith is decreasing. But every trial and tribulation is actually an opportunity to grow our faith. We must take time with God in prayer and Bible study—sometimes even fasting—and cultivate the level of faith we need for each day. God will provide it.

Does God care about the little problems in our lives? Well, He cared when a man in the Bible lost a borrowed ax-head. When the ax-head sank, the Lord used the prophet Elisha to make it float. God had a plan for that man, and he has a plan for us and our needs too! Let’s trust in His providence today.

Our society likes to teach mantras and affirmations. Many have faith in the supernatural—but what we need is supernatural faith. There is a true, all-encompassing faith, and it comes straight from God. Let’s ask the Lord to help our unbelief and increase our faith today.

We’re stressed out way too often. We worry about things like finances, health, and relationships—and don’t forget about politics! But when all this stress fills our lives, how much faith do we have? See, the power of God is released by faith. Everything is possible if we believe in God and His power.

Every one of us has felt fear. We live in a world burdened with anxiety. The Bible tells us not to be afraid, but sometimes we all wonder, How do we do that? The best and only way to deal with anxiety is to look to perfect Love: Jesus. The Lord loves us and cares for us. We can have peace if we look to Him today!

When Peter, James, and John were with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, they wanted to stay there. But alas, we can’t stay on the mountain. We’ve got to come back to the valley, where there are problems galore. We need rich time with Jesus, but we also need to work for Him. Let’s ask God for balance so that we can be effective in our service for Him.

Some Christians say that followers of Jesus won’t suffer. But John the Baptist suffered. So did Jesus, and He said, “If they persecute Me, they’ll persecute you.” We’ve got to read the whole counsel of God, which says, “It’s through much tribulation we enter the kingdom of heaven.” Then we’ll know how to praise God in the good times and the bad.

Spiritual leaders are important. But when Peter, James, and John were awed by seeing Moses and Elijah with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to Him.” A good rule for life is “Listen to Jesus.” He came to show us what God is really like so that we can live and speak and love like Him.

The Bible tells us always to rejoice, pray, and be thankful—which is difficult when we think we deserve everything! It is so humbling when we stop and realize that we deserve nothing but that God has still given us all we need. There is so much to be thankful for! Let’s give thanks to God today for His grace.

Nothing should be more important in our lives than Jesus. But let’s think for a minute of everything we put above Him—jobs, relationships, bills, social media, etc. If one of the disciples once put Jesus on the same level as a prophet, imagine how much lower we place Him. We must reevaluate our priorities and elevate Jesus!

The people we’re close to know us well—sometimes maybe a little too well! But are we that close to Jesus? Sure, we follow Him and read the Bible. But we should be moved by what moves Him. Like the old hymn says, “Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord.” Let’s get closer to Jesus today.

The presence of God is not confined to a church building or even to religion. The Holy Spirit is alive and working in our lives! Most of us don’t acknowledge Him enough—but He dwells in our hearts. The Spirit of God is invisible, holy, and real. Let’s invite the Spirit into our lives today and see the transformation He makes!

Some of us are secret Christians—afraid that others might find out that we love Jesus. But we shouldn’t let the godless, sinful culture around us make us ashamed of our devotion to Christ. Jesus is coming back, and when He does, He will know who has been embarrassed of Him and His words. Today let’s live for the Lord—unashamedly.

Jesus tells us to take up our crosses, but what does that really mean? We aren’t called to be publicly humiliated or beaten like He was. Instead we just have to humble ourselves. We must go against what our flesh wants every single day—that’s our cross. But when we do that, it’s so much easier to follow Jesus. Are you willing?

Many of us feel that God has called us to do something for Him, but often we’re not willing to step out in faith to start doing it. But like the people of Israel did, we have to march into the land before we will see God work. The Lord didn’t deliver us from sin so we could live complacent lives. He wants us to take the promised land of His will—by stepping out in faith.

Christians often disagree over doctrinal points. In fact, we even divide over issues like the historicity of the book of Genesis or how baptism should be done. But here’s the main question all of us need to consider: who do we say Jesus is? The disciples had the right answer to this question. Like them, let’s make our primary focus knowing Jesus.

Are we supposed to understand everything in the Bible? It’s important that we learn to be content with not understanding all the mysteries of Scripture. God doesn’t tell us everything we want to know—He tells us everything we need to know. Praise God that we don’t have to be scholarly theologians to read His Word!

How many of us are conscious every morning that the Holy Spirit wants to walk through the day with us? When Paul wrote, “The fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:13), he wanted us to understand that the Holy Spirit has a personality. The Spirit wants to help and empower us today—and fill us with His peace.

We all love to be right. We argue and fight cultural and religious wars. But we must be aware of the hypocrisy and appearances all around us. The Bible shows us what living for Jesus really looks like. He's not a religious leader or a social-media sensation. Jesus has to be King of our hearts.

Many of us feel we have too much on our plates and too little time or resources. But we should give our needs to Jesus and be thankful for what we do have. Today let’s put everything in the hands of Jesus and watch Him do amazing things!

Do we believe that God is capable of doing the impossible? We often put Him in a box and expect Him to act in certain ways. But we shouldn’t picture in our minds what we want God to do. Instead we should say “Come, Jesus, come.” Let’s welcome the Lord into our lives today and see what He will do.

Not many of us have been thrown into prison under a ruthless and violent king just for being Christians. But Paul was in that position. Even then, he was content. He actually wrote about peace and strength from a cell! We could learn a lot about contentment from him. Instead of focusing on our circumstances, let’s focus on the living God who dwells in and with us!

How often we give up on our prayers when we don't get the immediate answer we want. But the Lord loves persistent faith and prayer! The Bible tells us to keep asking and seeking. May we continually bring our prayers to Him.

God lives within us. Why? Because we need Him to rule our hearts every day, 24/7, 365. Our words and actions can be evil if we do not let Jesus be King of our hearts. Let’s ask the Lord to work in our lives today.

We all face needs that feel impossible to solve—finances, illnesses, heartbreaks. But with God nothing is impossible! The book of Esther is one big account of God proving that. Esther was up against an evil hatred. But because she trusted and obeyed God, her life and the lives of all her people were spared. Let’s all reject hate and embrace prayer today.

Most of us have heard about traditionally unclean foods. But what does God say about them? Are we supposed to follow the Old Testament food laws? Not according to Jesus. If we want to know what God is like, we should look at the face of Jesus—not at a law, a preacher, a leader, or an influencer. We can live a life that pleases God once we focus on Him.

“Religion” can be an intimidating word. Many of us associate religion with rules, traditions, and unmeetable standards. But when Jesus saw people holding tightly to religious traditions—He said they invalidated God’s commands! Let’s focus more on obeying God and less on the expectations of others.

The traditions of religion can be overwhelming—or even hurtful. We get so caught up in practices that we neglect what’s really important: our hearts. Instead of trying to keep all the traditions, what if we just focused on the Lord today? Let’s ask Him to give us tender hearts toward Him.

Election day can stir up many emotions within us—anger, resentment, fear. God has given us emotions, but He doesn’t want us to sin in our anger. If we make sure Jesus is in total control of our hearts, we can always rest in His peace.

How often do we reach out to Jesus? People in the Bible did everything they could to get to Him—even just to touch His clothes. The faith in that action was enough to heal them. What happened to those who wouldn’t go the extra few steps? We don’t know if they got healing or not. Let’s learn from those who were filled with faith. Let’s get to Jesus.

What are you struggling with today? Jesus sees you. He knows what you are going through, and He wants to help. The problems we face—even the trials that make us feel like we’re drowning—bring Jesus to us. All we have to do is let Him in. Jesus is faithful. Let’s seek His help today.

The world lacks true peace and joy. Many of us spend hours on our phones trying to fill the emptiness. But we don’t need distractions. We need Jesus. He offers us never ending peace and joy—for free! All we have to do is acknowledge His authority and live for Him. Jesus breaks chains, frees captives, and heals the brokenhearted. Let’s accept His peace and joy today.

Have you ever wondered why Jesus prayed so much? Isn’t He the Son of God? Why would He need prayer? Because He wanted to spend time with God the Father. Jesus was busier on earth than we’ll ever be. But He made time. We have full schedules, but we can find time to be with God. Let’s pray and spend time with our Father today.

People look for satisfaction in all kinds of places—a vacation in Bermuda, material things, a great time with friends. But after we enjoy these things, we’re still hungry. What we need is Jesus. He is the way, the truth, and the life. When Jesus feeds us, we’re satisfied.

The account of five loaves and two fish feeding five thousand people is so special. That bread and fish was enough to feed everyone—and it came about because the disciples put what they had in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ. We should do that too. We might think that we have nothing, but what we have is enough if the Lord has it in His hands.

Do you have to be special for God to work through you? No, He can use anyone at any moment! One way He does that is through the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We don’t have to try being people we’re not. We can just be ordinary. God is not looking for ability—He is looking for availability. Let’s be available for the Spirit to fill us and for God to use us.