Sermon Notes Slander Against the Savior Matthew 12:22-32 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: Can one thoughtless word or irreverent deed secure for us God’s eternal damnation even if we repent? Is there a sin that God refuses to forgive? These are questions of paramount importance. Bracketed by a miraculous healing and a revealing exchange with the… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes Mercy > Sacrifice Matthew 12:1-14 Pastor Brent Whitefield Introduction: In this passage, Jesus not only asserts his Lordship over the Sabbath, but demonstrates it by challenging the Pharisees’ merciless interpretation of the Law. Given our tendency to choose rigid legal observance to the harder work of compassion for our neighbor, we should place… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes The Mystery of the Easy Yoke Matthew 11:25-30 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: As he is sending out his disciples, Jesus warns them about the suffering they will certainly experience: they will be hated, disowned, and persecuted because of him. Not long before that, Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount, wherein he called… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes The Destructive Nature of Ungrace Matthew 11:12-24 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: Generally speaking, Christians can be hard to please. We want what we want and we want it our way. Jesus warns against such a querulous mindset, namely, rejecting his salvation, and himself, in favor of a formula that leaves us more in… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes Finding Our Life in Jesus’ Mission Matthew 10:34-42 Taylor Mendoza, Junior High Intern 4 Gospel Truths on the Nature of Our Mission: 01. 02. 03. 04. Sermon Slides 1. 4 Gospel Truths on the Nature of Our Mission: 2. 01. By definition, the gospel divides. 3. Read Matthew 10:34-36. 4. 02. Love… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes Two Birds for a Penny Matthew 10:1-33 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: Comfort. Security. Stability. These are the buzz words that describe the benefits of the American Dream. But what if following Jesus meant setting aside those cherished values? In a commissioning speech for the first disciples, Jesus makes it clear that the Christian life… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes A Daughter and a Woman Matthew 9:18-26 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: “Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’” This was Jesus’ response to the Bible scholars of his day, when he was interrupted over dinner. Go study. Go think. Go meditate on God’s mercy, because it’s not easily… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes Old Wineskins Matthew 9:14-17 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: The prophet Isaiah, when referring to the coming Messiah, likened him to a “man of sorrows, acquainted with grief.” But this same Savior could also be described as a “man of controversy, acquainted with harassment.” Over the span of just a few hours, three religious… Continue Reading
Sermon Notes The True Light of Christmas John 1:1-18 Pastor Brent Whitefield Introduction: The most consequential event in human history—God coming to mankind in the person of Jesus—is nowhere more beautifully and richly explained than in the prologue to John’s Gospel. We are reminded here of the only other moment of similar weight: The… Continue Reading
The Importance of Timing Galatians 4:1-7 Pastor John Sloan Introduction: Not a minute too soon. Or a second late. At the exact moment that God had planned all along, he sent his Son, born to a poor, peasant, teenage girl. As the Scriptures affirm and the creeds attest, the Very God of Very God, the… Continue Reading