Resurrection Life Sunday Sermon

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 4:14 - 5:10If you’ve been following our current sermon series, you know by now that the Book of Hebrews is a loving and theologically rich warning that we not turn away from Jesus after once claiming faith in Him. But the Christian life is, at times, more difficult than we ever expected. We are often tempted and greatly discouraged. Where or to whom can we go for help? We need a Great High Priest, one who perfectly represents us to God and represents God to us. God has given us such an advocate in His Son, Jesus. This Sunday Sermon from Hebrews 4:14–5:10 provides us with powerful reasons for trusting Jesus over the Old Testament priests, and also over anyone else — pastors and elders, parents and mentors, friends, podcasters, and YouTube influencers — for this help from heaven.Because Jesus is our Great High Priest, we can “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” — which is all the time, really. May the Lord give us such confidence in Him, and may He give us mercy and grace to help as a result.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 4:1-11Our last podcast was a history lesson. Today, we look to the future. God has in store for us a future rest. The reason that rest remains for those who believe in Jesus is simply because Jesus hasn’t come back yet. Along with Jesus’ return is a promise fulfilled: an eternal Sabbath rest. Hebrews 4:1-11 partly defines for us what this future reality will be like. Dr. Knetsch says these verses are among the most poignant, dense, and difficult passages he has ever preached. That seems to be a recurrent theme in this series, but it’s true. However, the flow, logic, and purpose behind these verses from the writer of Hebrews are so meticulously intentional. Pastor Mark hopes you enjoy diving into this passage as much as he has enjoyed studying it the past couple of weeks.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews: 6-19This Sunday Sermon is dedicated to Pastor Mark's history professor in seminary, Dr. David Rylaarsdam. As he guided us, eager seminarians, through the centuries of church history, he kept pushing us to learn from the heretics. He would challenge us to pay attention to the heretics for two reasons. First, to learn from their mistakes. Second, to know how their theological errors helped the church articulate theological orthodoxy with precision. In Hebrews 3:11-19, we are also challenged to learn from history. The author challenges his audience (which includes us, by the way) that we must learn from the errors of one particular Old Testament event. That one event disabled Israel’s chance to enter into the Promised Land (a.k.a., “rest”). A whole generation of God’s people was banned from entering the promised rest. We must learn from this story! We must learn from their errors. For what’s the point of persevering for only a season? What’s the point of faith if you’ll only give up? In this podcast, God’s living and active Word challenges us to learn from history—to endure to the end with faith in our living God!

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 3:1-6This Sunday Sermon's title, "We Are the House," comes from Hebrews 3:6: "And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope." This verse emerges from a brief but powerful comparison between Moses and Jesus. By now, we expect the author of the book of Hebrews to pack a powerful theological punch into just a few verses, and this passage is no exception.What a privilege it is to revisit the significance of Moses--this important Old Testament leader--and to see how his role within God's redemptive story ultimately points to an infinitely greater liberator in Jesus.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 2:10-18Pastor Mark wraps up the author of Hebrews' discussion of angels and Jesus. This scripture is actually a transitional passage between demonstrating Jesus' superiority over angels and establishing His superiority over the roles Moses and Aaron played in the Old Testament. The author begins to open the door for us to see how Jesus is the grand Liberator--far greater than Moses. He also begins to show us how Jesus is the great High Priest--far greater than Aaron. Our passage concludes by comforting us in our trials and tribulations: Jesus is our ultimate hope and help.

Scripture: Hebrews 2:5-9This Sunday's message comes from a profoundly rich passage. These five verses wrestle with this: If Jesus was superior to angels, and if he's that much more powerful, then why did he appear like any ordinary person?To tackle this question, the author of Hebrews reflects upon Psalm 8. He concludes that Jesus only appeared inferior for a time during his incarnation and particularly in his crucifixion. However, even through these apparent weaknesses, his death didn't diminish his superiority. Jesus' incarnation and crucifixion qualified him all the more to be our Savior-King.So yes, this passage is rich. But it's also practical. If Jesus is so superior, if Jesus is the perfect Savior, then why does it appear that everything is out of control? Hebrews 2:8b-9 invites us to keep our eyes on Jesus despite the supposed evidence around us: "At present, we do not see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who, for a little while, was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus.So, as you listen today and look around, what do you see? Do you see an inferior Jesus in a powerful world, or do you see a powerful Jesus in a broken world?" Do you see the powers of culture overtaking the authority of Jesus, or do you see the power of Jesus reigning over and above the chaos? Do you see the one who is truly in control? May you be comforted as you listen by seeing Jesus. We see Jesus, even within the chaos of our times. History will continue to repeat itself, but Jesus is the same, yesterday, today, and forever.

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 22:36-40This Sunday we welcomed to the pulpit someone new, but not a stranger to us, Matt and Shondra Oliver have worshiped with us for awhile now. Matt is a actually a teaching elder within the PCA serving as a chaplain in the U.S. Army. What a privilege to have such a talent, willingness, and ability within our own flock! Matthew brought us a very timely message for St. Valentine's weekend. That's right Saint Valentine! Let's reclaim this holiday of love for the one who is all about love.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 1:1 - 2:5Over the past couple of weeks, we have looked at big picture themes from the Book of Hebrews. This week, we focus on the first major argument in this book. The author of Hebrews jumps into the deep end of Old Testament proof-texting. The term “proof-texting” can have negative connotations. People can justify all kinds of unbiblical points by misappropriating Scripture. However, in this case, our author teaches us how to use Scripture positively to make a truth claim. In Hebrews 1, the author quotes seven Old Testament passages to prove that Jesus is far superior to the angels. This explanatory chapter gives way to Chapter 2, with an immediate exhortation to resist faith drift. Because Jesus is so much superior to angels, and his message is so much purer as God’s Son, how much more should we heed his message!

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 1-10Looking at the first ten chapters of Hebrews, Mark continues our current series “From Shadow to Substance,” with an “Overview of Hebrews on a Snowy Sunday.”This episode is taken from a the special video Pastor Mark recorded to assist worshipers with their worship at home due to the snowy weather and difficult transportation.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 1:1-3The Book of Hebrews is where we will be spending our time this winter and spring. What a glorious gift it is to feast upon such a treasure trove of truth! We kick-start this sermon series by focusing on Hebrews 1:1-3. It’s quite the challenge to find more theologically rich verses in all of God’s Word. In fact, Pastor Mark is pretty excited to dive into the details of this passage. The poetic details within these three verses reveal a plethora of distinctions between what was in the Old Testament and who is in the New Testament. It also reveals a glorious tension between Christ’s cosmic transcendence and His personal eminence.

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 131This Sunday, Jeff presented us with a moving and timely sermon on Psalm 131, a passage that offers a lifetime’s worth of lessons in just three verses. As we begin a new year, we often set our thoughts on hopes, dreams, and goals for the coming months. We might also reflect on the causes of past disappointments and the fears we face in the present. In this Psalm, King David foreshadows the Lord Jesus Christ by humbly acknowledging the limitations of human understanding and finding our ultimate contentment and delight in God alone. May this brief passage reorient our new year’s aspirations and anxieties toward stronger, more joyful trust in our loving God.

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 1How does a new year start? With the first psalm in the Bible, Psalm 1! It has two powerful images: a tree planted by streams of water and chaff blown away by the wind. We'll see how sin can pull us away from God’s best for us. And we’ll also discover the secret of a happy life: not just doing the right things but enjoying God’s Word. We’ll see how the new birth plants us by the stream, and how the Holy Spirit keeps us connected to God. Listen, ready to be rooted in God and walk in the legacy He gave to you in His Son.May this first podcast of the year set us on a course toward greater faithfulness and fruitfulness in Christ! Let’s also keep in mind that this is an ideal time of year to subscribe to the podcast and share it with a friend or relative.

With this podcast, we complete our sermon series in Ezra–Nehemiah by examining Nehemiah, Chapter 13. What might Nehemiah 13 have to do with the coming of Christ? Well, everything, as we will see.Like the books of Deuteronomy, Judges, and 2 Kings, the Book of Nehemiah ends with a sense of incompleteness and uncertainty. Although in Chapters 9 and 10, God’s people agreed in writing to repent of various sins and, at last, to obey God. Nehemiah points out in this final chapter that the people have fallen into the same sins yet again! The book leaves the reader longing to discover power for real inward change, for transformation that brings consistent growth in obedience to God.Can you relate to our spiritual forefathers’ experience here? Have you ever felt — or do you even now feel — “stuck” in a cycle of sin, repentance, resolve, and repetition of the same sins? God’s good news is that Jesus Christ came not only to bear the penalty of our sin, but also to clothe us with the power to grow in Christlike character now. Subscribe and share this podcast with a friend or relative who shares this same dilemma or is looking for a new church home!

SCRIPTURE: Nehemiah 9This week, we take a good, hard look at another worship service from Nehemiah 9. Last week’s sermon on Nehemiah 8 described an atypical ideal for corporate worship: Ezra reads from the Law, leaders preach among the people, the people respond, and Nehemiah shepherds the people out with the call to rejoice. Nehemiah 9 records another corporate gathering occurring later that same month. However, this time, the chapter contains the content preached by the Levites. For six hours, the people listen to the Law. For an additional six hours, the people heard it applied. That application is essentially a retelling of redemptive history. It is a long chapter because it is a long story of redemption. First, we’ll read all of Nehemiah 9 to hear how this story of redemption is really a confession of sin coupled with a confession of God’s grace. As one commentator puts it, "it is a chapter of corporate confession pulsating between God’s grace and the people's ingratitude." It is yet another challenging chapter that helps us grow in the awareness of our own depravity, but likewise in our grasp of the grandness of God’s amazing grace. What a God we serve! He puts up with so much, and yet He still provided His Son to atone for all our sin. Praise be to God!