January 2021

Counterfeit Disciple

Have you ever seen a counterfeit bill? I’ve never actually seen or handled one myself, but I have seen some pictures online that looked pretty convincing. I suppose if it’s done well a counterfeit bill will look and feel very much like the real thing. This Sunday as we continue our study through the Gospel […]



Exploring a Mystery

In Acts 20:27 Paul told the Elders of the Ephesian church, “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” It is because we desire to receive the whole counsel of God that we have set out to study our way through an entire book of the Bible. We want to […]



Stealing Pennies From A Golden Bowl

A family dinner creates connection, and, as Christians, we ought to know this from church. Too often when churches speak about “creating community” they mean some new program or a small group strategy or something slick and new that they feel will get people together. But in the Bible the focus of community is not […]



November 2020

Pouring It Out

In this message we dive into the twelfth chapter of John which begins in a very seasonally appropriate way with a Thanksgiving dinner. This Sunday we’ll be studying verses 1-8 of John 12 and thinking deeply about the nature of Christian Thanksgiving. One thing is for sure, a quick survey of all the Bible says […]



Sovereignty

It has been a few weeks since we were last in the Gospel of John, but this Sunday we’ll be picking things up where we left off in chapter 10. From beginning to end this chapter illustrates powerfully the perfect sovereignty of Jesus. By sovereignty I mean the absolute right of Jesus to do whatever […]



October 2020

The Good Shepherd

Sheep are the animal most often mentioned in the Bible, and although many analogous comparisons are employed in the Bible to describe the relationship between God and His people, that of shepherd and sheep is definitely a favorite among the biblical writers. In John 10, the next portion of John’s Gospel that we will begin […]



Free Slaves

I once had a friend who told me the unorthodox story of how he first came to put his trust in Jesus for salvation. His Dad had unexpectedly pulled him and his younger brother out of school one day to take them on an impromptu field trip. He was just a young boy at the […]



Is The Bible Reliable

If you turn in your Bibles to the next section of the Gospel of John you will find the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 7:53-8:11), which contains one of Jesus’ most memorable quotes, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” If you […]



September 2020

Chained Lions

As you all may know, Sarah and I lived and served for nearly a decade at Camp Maranatha in the San Jacinto Mountains of Southern California. During late summer when the San Jacinto Mountains become a dry, brittle and thirsty place, and the dust along the walkways becomes as fine as baby powder there was […]



Coming and Going

In this message we will continue our study through Jesus’ exchange with the crowds and religious leaders at the festival of booths in Jerusalem. The portion we’ll be spending time in this week is John 7:25-36. Jesus hated puffery and domination of any sort. At every opportunity he confronted those who looked down on others […]