Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — "Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod," Jesus told his disciples. But what did he mean? They thought—wrongly—that he was talking about bread. But he was teaching them to think in a manner different from the rest of the world and more like God. He teaches us to do the same. Text: Mark 7:1 to 8:21
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Two amazing miracles revealed more about who Jesus is—but would his disciples understand that he was more than a new Moses, more than a prophet greater than Elisha? Jesus, the Son of God, made the impossible possible by the power of his mere word—and he still does the same in our lives today. Text: Mark 6:30-56
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Jesus was popular and surrounded by crowds everywhere—except in his own hometown. There he was rejected and could not do much effective ministry. His twelve apostles, sent out to many towns, were successful in their work, but Jesus anticipated that some towns would reject them. John the Baptist, prophet and ally of Jesus, was arrested and later executed by a ruler who knew John was a holy and righteous man, but killed him anyway. If Jesus and those who ministered along with him were rejected by many people, was Jesus really worth following? Will we still follow him if the people around us reject him today? Text: Mark 6:1-29
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — In four consecutive stories Mark shows us the power of Jesus: power over nature, over demons, over disease, and even over death! He also shows us human fear—sometimes before people encountered Jesus, and sometimes because they encountered Jesus. These stories call us to consider how we, too, deal with our fears—especially in light of Jesus' power and compassion, which together reveal who he is and invite us to come to him for help. Text: Mark 4:35 to 5:43
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Why did Jesus so often teach by speaking in parables? His parable of the seeds and soils gives us a hint. Sometimes the truth is hard to receive when given directly; but parables speak indirectly, sparking the mind to search for the parable's meaning, opening the mind to new perspectives. Some listeners probably did not care to investigate Jesus' parables beyond the story on the surface. But for those with ears to hear—those whose desire to understand drove them to dig deeply into the parables—Jesus offered the secret of the kingdom of God. Text: Mark 4:1-34
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Demons come up frequently in this text. They serve as a window to help us and the people who encountered Jesus see his awesome power and hints of his true identity. The demons knew exactly who Jesus was. Some religious leaders, though, thought he himself was possessed by Beelzebul, the prince of demons. Crowds flocked to Jesus, but did they really understand his true purpose? Close followers devoted themselves to learn from him, believing Jesus was truly from God. Who do you believe Jesus is? And how will you respond to him? Text: Mark 3:7-35
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Six times in six consecutive stories, Jesus does the right thing—but does it in the wrong way, at least in some people's opinions. He didn't have to do the wrong parts of the right things—healing on the Sabbath, claiming to forgive sin, eating with sinners and tax collectors. So why did he do such things? He did them because they were right and because of who he is—which is also why we do God's will, with or without the approval of others. Text: Mark 1:40 to 3:6
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Opening his story of Jesus, Mark tells about the amazing events that surrounded the start of Jesus' ministry: the prophecy-fulfilling work of John the Baptist, the voice of God himself speaking, Jesus drawing the attention of Satan himself, an exorcism of a demon who knew who Jesus was, healings—amazing events that remind us how quickly, how immediately, Jesus changes the lives of all who encounter him. Text: Mark 1:1-39
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Many people, even in ancient Israel, have worshiped idols intentionally, leading themselves away from God into sin and destructive living. But sometimes even we who love God and want to worship him alone find hidden idols in our lives, things we worship unintentionally—the way John began to worship an angel (twice!) in the book of Revelation. We need to beware of such idols and check ourselves regularly, asking ourselves, "Whom do you worship?" Texts: Exodus 20:1-5, Romans 1:21-32, Revelation 19:1-10 & 22:8-9
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — God created human beings in his image to rule over life on earth, but our earliest ancestors—and we too—turned away from that identity to create our own self-identities, whatever we wanted to be. But in pursuing the idol of self-identity, we lost the glorious identity God gave to all his children, substituting it for lesser identities that could never bring true fulfillment. Jesus, though, took on himself the identity chosen for him by God and refused to worship the idol of self-identity. He set us an example to follow, so that we may regain the identity for which God created us and share in the glory of Christ. Texts: Psalm 8, Genesis 3:1-13, Philippians 2:1-11
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — God loves to grant the dreams of his children. Yet for many years, he declined to grant Abraham and Sarah's dream: the dream of having a son of their own. At long last, God granted that dream, and their son Isaac was conceived miraculously. Some years later, though, God asked Abraham to give his dream—his son—back to God by offering him as a sacrifice. By this test, God watched to see whether Abraham would let his son, his dream, become an idol between himself and God. We too may be tempted to place even our most worthy dreams ahead of God in our lives, when our lives and our dreams themselves will be most blessed if we submit them to God. Text: selections from Genesis 12-22
Sunday Sermon by Ryan Ferguson — We all struggle with fear and anxiety at times, and with worry. Fear typically has a specific object and can be helpful to us; anxiety is usually more generalized, and often interferes with our lives. God calls us not to be anxious, but to put our trust in him, even when we are faced with very real fears. When we trust in him, he helps us overcome our anxiety, and he gives us his peace. Text: Proverbs 3:5-6
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Jesus encountered two rich men, one after the other. One could not set aside the idol of wealth in his life; the other devoted himself to God over everything else, including his wealth. Jesus warned us that it is very difficult for the rich to enter into the kingdom of God, though even then all things are possible with God. This lesson examines the temptation of wealth, the Lord's call to submit our wealth to his rule in our lives, and what we can do to use the measure of wealth God has given us for his glory. Texts: Luke 18:18-27 & 19:1-10, 1 Timothy 6:17-19
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Joseph had every right and reason to get revenge against his cruel brothers, and God gave him the power to do so—but Joseph refused to let his own honor become an idol in his life. He devoted himself to God and trusted in God for his honor, and as a result, his broken family was reconciled. We all want and need to be honored; we can trust God to bring us the honor we need, so that when we are offended by others, we do not have to get revenge. Text: selections from Genesis 37 and 42-50
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Everyone needs to be loved, desired, appreciated. Leah did too—but her husband loved and married her sister! Both women were his wives simultaneously, but Jacob loved Leah's sister Rachel the most. Leah was desperate for her husband's love, and we can understand why; but what she needed more was what she already had, the love of God. God's love for us gives us a solid foundation for life and all our relationship, so that our yearning to be loved need not ever become an idol that controls our lives. Text: Genesis 29:14b-35
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — The Israelites knew better when they crafted a golden calf idol, directly violating the first two of the 10 Commandments spoken only weeks earlier in their hearing by the voice of God himself! So why did they do it? They did it because they were afraid—and in their fear, they looked for their security in something other than the true God. In our quest to keep ourselves from all idols, we must take care to make sure we look for our ultimate security in God alone. Text: Exodus 32
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — It's a sad story of God's judgment: The last four kings of Judah continued Judah's overall trajectory away from God, their true King. Finally, Judah became so filled with sin and wickedness that God was no longer willing to forgive, and he brought destruction on Judah. Even then, though, God was looking for an opportunity to redeem his people in the future. Text: 2 Kings 23:31 to 25:30
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — King Josiah served God from a young age, but when he heard the words of God's law for the first time, he devoted himself and his nation to God all the more. Because he humbled himself and turned to God, God gave Judah one last chance to do right before he brought his judgment upon them. We, too, often need one last chance—and God readily gives it if we humble our hearts and seek him. Text: 2 Kings 22:1 to 23:30
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Our God does amazing things, and when Manasseh, the most wicked king that Judah ever had, repented, God did another amazing thing: He forgave him! The recognition that God could forgive as evil a person as Manasseh gives us hope that God will forgive us, too, as we repent of our sin and turn to him. Text: 2 Chronicles 33
Sunday Sermon by Kevin Jensen — Hezekiah was a man of great faith, yet he, like we do sometimes, faced enormous troubles that threatened to overwhelm him—and not only him, but also Jerusalem and the entire nation of Judah. How did he respond? Hezekiah stumbled a little at first, but later he prayed, then prayed again. And God responded to the king's faith and rescued Jerusalem. Text: 2 Kings 18-19