Sermons from 2024
The Elect of God
The Elect of God Colossians 3:12-17; 1 Peter 2:9-12 Dec. 29th, 2024 Introduction: Election is one of those topics that is hard to process because it involves a paradox; people have free will, yet God is completely in charge and has no limit to His power and authority. I, for one, have gotten used to such paradoxes because I believe in a Trinity, that God is completely one and completely three and the same time, yet one and only…
Pondering Things in Our Hearts
Pondering Things in Our Hearts Christmas Eve December 24, 2024 Luke 1:1-20 Introduction Somewhere in the back of my mind I remember reading something about an Italian philosophical group who maintained that our perception that life goes quickly is pervasive but untrue. I was startled by the claim, because it has always seemed to me that life speeds up as we age. Life crawled when I was in junior high school. In seventh grade my freshman year of high…
The Song of Mary
The Song of Mary Luke 1:46-55; 1 Samuel 2:1-10 Sunday, December 22, 2024 The Fourth Sunday of Advent Luke 1:49 “For He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name.” Introduction: Seeing the Holy Spirit’s work in the midst of challenging circumstances. The gift of discernment One of the spiritual gifts mentioned in the Bible is the gift of Discernment. People with this gift can see through phony spirituality and can see clearly…
The Peace of God
The Peace of God Philippians 4:4-7 Sunday, December 15, 2024 at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa Philippians 4:7 (NKJV) 7and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Introduction Jesus is called the Prince of Peace, and so peace is an appropriate theme for Advent and Christmas. The idea of peace is powerful and broad. There is the peace with God that comes only through Jesus, and there…
The Refiner’s Fire
The Refiner’s Fire Malachi 3:1-4; Philippians 1:3-11 Sunday, December 8, 2024, at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa Malachi 3:3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Live, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness. Introduction: The order of the Hebrew Bible was rearranged somewhere around the fourth or fifth century, with Malachi replacing Chronicles at the…
Watch
Watch Luke 21:36 Sunday, December 1, 2024 The First Sunday of Advent First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa Introduction: The Titanic had six watchmen on board and two of them, Frederick Fleet and Reginald Lee, where on duty on the fateful night. It was very dark and the water was so calm that it made it hard to discern where water stopped and air began. Though too late to completely avoid it, Fleet was the first to see the…
Encourage One Another
Encourage One Another Hebrews 10:19-25; Micah 2:1-2 Sunday, November 17, 2024 at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa Opening Remarks: encouragement and wrath A key phrase in our text for today is the command to encourage one another toward good works and to meet together especially as you see the day coming. (that’s a paraphrase) This note of encouragement stands out in stark relief compared to the other passage that talks about anger and wrath. The concepts of…
The Good Things to Come
The Good Things to Come Hebrews 8:11; Ephesians 1:3-14 Sunday, November 3, 2024 at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa Introduction Today’s message is called “The Good Things to Come” and it is based on our passage in Hebrews. Writing to people who grew up seeing the awesome spectacle of the High Priest entering the Holy of Holies in the Temple with the blood of animals to consecrate and purify the Temple and atone for the sins of…
How to Love Your Neighbor
How to Love Your Neighbor Leviticus 19:17-18 First Congregational Church, Marshalltown, Iowa on October 20, 2024 A large part of loving your neighbor deals with how to resolve conflicts with your neighbor. In this fallen world we must reconcile ourselves to the hard truth that we will always run the risk of being offended or hurt by someone else, be the one who offends and hurts another, and be the one at fault and have to make amends. Jesus quotes…
The Day of Atonement
The Day of Atonement Sunday, October 13, 2024 at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa Leviticus 16:20-22; Hebrews 9:23-28 21st Sunday after Pentecost · Hebrews 9:24 (New King James Version of the Bible) For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; · Introduction: To better understand the present, learn of the past. That is easy…
The Cup
The CupMark 14:32-38; Hebrews 5:7-10Mark 14:36“And He said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will but what You will.’”Sunday, September 29, 2024 at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa • Introduction: cup as destinyA week from now we will have the Sacrament of Holy Communion, and with that in mind, I wanted to share with you some thoughts I found on the internet regarding the symbolism of…
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
The Parable of the Mustard SeedMark 4:30-32Sunday, September 15, 2024 at The First Congregational Church of Marshalltown, Iowa 1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” The words above are what it says at the end of the great chapter on the Resurrection, but what if you feel like serving Christ and praying and doing good is like…