Is your life characterized by thanksgiving, or better yet, thanks-living? Have you learned to receive everything – the good and the bad, the joyful and the sorrowful – with thanksgiving? Our redemption is manifest chiefly in a grateful heart. What does your life declare of thankfulness to God? Listen as we examine Psalm 107 and consider the promptings, the pattern, and the practice of giving thanks and living thankfully.
Category Archives: Sermons
05/17/2020 | “The Next Step” | Psalm 130
It is God’s kindness in Christ that invites us to confess and find forgiveness and release from the Gordian knot of guilt. Have you learned to confess? Is confession a regular feature of your prayer life? Or have you tried to find every other way to rid your self of that one dark blot, that no soap or good works can wash away? Listen as we examine Psalm 130 and consider the next steps in our fellowship with God expressed through confession of our sin.
05/10/2020 | “Into His Presence” | Psalm 113
How do you appear before the Lord in prayer and in worship? We are warned in Scripture not to appear casually or carelessly before our God. God loves to receive his children, but he has established the approach – an approach clearly revealed in Scripture, and especially in the Psalms. Listen to “Into His Presence” from Psalm 113 as we consider how we are to approach our God in worship and in prayer.
05/03/2020 | “Ascended into Heaven” | Luke 24:50-53
Every week millions of Christians profess their faith together in the Apostles’ Creed. Among its central doctrines is a profession that Jesus “ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.” Yet many have never considered why this is such an important doctrine. Listen as we examine Luke 24:50-53 and consider the hope and comfort we receive from the Ascension.
04/26/2020 | “New Normal” | Luke 24:36-53
As we encounter the Lord’s disciples at the end of the Gospel of Luke, we find them facing a radically new normal. Jesus, their master and teacher, has finished His redemptive work. As He is preparing to return to the Father, He is preparing them to pick up where He left off. Jesus meets the disciples on the first Easter night, he comforts their fears, calls them to take their part in the story of redemption, and promises them His ongoing presence in a radically new and powerful way. The end of the gospel is only the end of the beginning. Listen to “The New Normal” from Luke 24:36-53 as we examine how we are to live facing our own “new normal.” Get the Order of Service.
04/19/2020 | “In Plain Sight” | Luke 24:13-35
The story of Jesus on the Emmaus road is remarkable. Included only in the Gospel of Luke, it is a recognition story, instructing and encouraging us in the hope of seeing the Risen Christ. Two disciples have Jesus right in front of them, yet they do not recognize Him for who He is. What about you? Have you recognized the Risen Christ ? Join us for “In Plain Sight” as we examine Luke 24 and consider our how we too can see the Risen Christ. Get the Order of Service.
04/12/2020 | “Not Here” | Luke 24:1-12
What is your response to the Resurrection? For the men and women who encountered and empty tomb and a Risen Christ, the Resurrection changed everything. Has it changed everything for you? Has it given hope in grief? Joy in sorrow? Faith in fear? Have you met the Risen Christ, the Living One, who has defeated the last enemy, Death, and holds the keys to death and the grave? Listen to “Not Here” from Luke 24:1-12 as we consider our own response to the Resurrection of Jesus.
04/05/2020 | “Making Arrangements” | Luke 23:50-56
Jesus burial established a remarkable trajectory of hope for all who believe in him. Had Jesus been tossed into a Roman burial pit, many clear and compelling proofs of the resurrection would not have been possible. But in God’s advanced funeral planning for His Only Begotten Son, he is buried in a prominent place, in a grave secure from unseen access, in a new, unused tomb, and wrapped in grave-clothes that would be abandoned. Listen to “Making Arrangements” as we examine Luke 23:50-56 and consider amazing importance of the burial of the Lord Jesus as it testifies to the certainty of Jesus’ death, the courage of those who follow Him, and a clear witness to the resurrection. Get the Order of Service here.
03/29/2020 | “Behold Your King” | Luke 23:26-49
Luke’s account of the crucifixion is remarkable in many ways. It gives scarcely any details about the crucifixion itself, but focuses attention on the reactions of those Jesus encountered as He traveled the way of suffering. He was met with pity, mockery and bitter anger, but also remarkable and unexpected faith. At every turn Luke declares the Kingship of Jesus. Yet, Jesus hardly looks like a King. Listen as we examine Luke 23:26-49 and consider the Kingship of Christ, powerfully declared, brazenly rejected and savingly believed. Get the Order of Service here.
03/22/2020 | "Jesus On Trial" | Luke 22:63-23:25
Listen to “Jesus On Trial” as we examine Luke 22 and 23 and consider the greatest courtroom drama in history as it unfolds Christ’s innocence and condemnation for our guilt and pardon. Get the Order of Service here.
Pottsville Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church 