Date: 5/21/2017 Title: Avoiding a Legalistic Heart Speaker: Pastor Darryl J. Stalter Scripture: Matthew 12:1-14
In our relativistic world, we are often afraid that we will be viewed a legalistic. However, how God defines legalism is different than the way the world does. The world defines legalism as anyone who upholds a universal standard of truth and behavior, to include God’s Word. In Matthew 12 Jesus defines legalism more narrowly as bowing down to the letter of God’s Law to bolster one’s own self-righteousness often in violation of the very intent of that law and often at the expense of others. Although he calls us to be holy, we can counter a legalistic heart by remembering mercy.
Date: 5/14/2017 Title: A Woman Used by God Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Luke 1:26-38
In a world with competing messages for what it means to be a woman, the Gospel of Luke brings some clarity. It is an ordinary woman who places her trust in God to do the extraordinary through her.
Date: 5/7/2017 Title: Finding Rest Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Matthew 11:25-30
All of us face burdens in life and long for rest. In Matthew 11 Jesus calls us to Himself, to take up his yoke and to learn from him. The result is the rest for our souls for which we have been looking.
Date: 4/30/2017 Title: They Saw the Light, But… Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Matthew 11:20-24
The New Testament cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum witnessed the miracles of Christ first hand. If anyone would repent and turn their hearts toward God it would be these cities. Yet, their hardness of heart prevented them from coming to Christ in faith even in the face of such divine power. As such, Jesus tells them that they will be under God’s judgment all the more. This serves as a warning for us that we too can fall under God’s judgment for rejecting Christ in the face of what He has done for us.
Date: 4/23/2017 Title: The Question. Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Matthew 11:1-19
The ultimate question anyone can ask is who is Jesus. When struggling with doubt, John the Baptist sent messengers to Jesus asking, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” Jesus’ answer to John is the same as it is to us: look at what He has done.
Date: 4/16/2017 Title: They Crucified Him – Who Are They? Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Mark 15:24-25; Isaiah 53:1-7
When Jesus died, the Gospels are clear that “they” crucified Him. The question is who are they? Some say it was the Jews. Others say it was the Romans. Although the Jews did demand for His crucifixion and the Romans carry it out, that fails to capture the real truth. It was are sins that out Jesus there on the cross and His love for us that kept Him there.
Date: 4/9/2017 Title: Seeing the Goodness of God in an Unfair World Speaker: Pastor Darryl J. Stalter Scripture: Psalm 73
Living in an often unfair world it is often difficult to see the goodness of God. If this is something you have struggled with you are not alone. Many of the heroes of the Bible struggled with the same issue. Psalm 73 chronicles the psalmist Asaph’s struggle with reconciling a good God with an unfair world. As he truly sees who God is, Asaph’s perspective changes so that the goodness of God increases and the unfairness of the world decreases.
Date: 4/2/2017 Title: Diagnosing the Ills of the World Speaker: Pastor Darryl J. Stalter Scripture: Romans 1:18-31
When most people look at the world they experience a sense that something is not quite right. We see all the evil around us and are unsure what to do about it. Sometimes we ignore it in hopes that it would just go away. Sometimes we notice what is happening, but do not speak up in fear of offending someone. If we do try to do something about we often address the symptoms of living in a wicked world rather than the actual disease. Romans 1 diagnoses the ills of the world and provides the remedy in God’s Son Jesus Christ.
Date: 3/26/2017 Title: Detours Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Genesis 37 and others
Often in life it appears as though we are on detours. We set a course, something happens and before we know it we are on a completely different course. Sometimes detours are due to our own choices and actions. But as the life of Joseph in Genesis 37 and the lives of other heroes of Scripture attest, many times perceived detours are God’s way of directing the course of our life for a greater purpose.
Date: 3/19/2017 Title: Honorably Living Part II Speaker: Pastor George Gracie Scripture: Proverbs 3:9-10
Integral to honorable living and stewardship is the concept of First-fruits. In the Bible this is the idea of giving God the best and first of the harvest. Most of us do not raise crops, so this principle may seem foreign to us, but it still applies to us whether we are harvesting crops or money. More importantly, what we do with the principle of First-fruits reveals our own hearts.
