Our contemporary celebration of Thanksgiving arises from a European tradition with deep Christian roots, recognizing the blessings and provision of Almighty God either at harvest time or after deliverance from significant trouble. And yet, we forget this sometimes. We forget that God is the one who provides, and we take that burden upon ourselves. We strive after the things of this world, searching for happiness, searching for meaning, searching for peace. Jesus’ words remind us to set our anxieties aside. He tells us that when we focus on the things of this world, we will find anxiety. But, when we focus on God and his Kingdom instead, everything else falls into its own right place.
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Recent sermons preached by Wise Church pastors and preachers.
The Crucified King
As Americans, we don’t have much of an appreciation for the role of a King. In fact, you might say that the roots of our nations are decidedly anti-king. Our constitution was set up with a system of checks and balances to make sure that no one person could hold all the power at one time. We have a right to be afraid of earthly kings, but Jesus is a king that will never fail us. His rule is just and perfect, he always has our best interests and the best interests of his kingdom in mind. And one day he will make right all that is broken in this world.
View SermonLetting Go of our Creations
Once when my son was about three years old he had spent about an hour building an incredible duplo block creation. His little sister crawled over and began to pull at his buildings. He exploded with anger and frustration. When I mentioned that it was time for lunch and therefore clean up time which meant taking his building down and putting it away he was beside himself with anger and rage. I sat on the floor with my son trying to help him understand that God desires for us to give ourselves to work and creativity, and to also let go of that which we create. It is so tempting in this life to cling to physical things we can see, touch, and experience. God longs to give us a godly perspective of our life. If we come to him we will have right thinking in regards to the way we invest ourselves.
View SermonIn My Flesh I Shall See God
There is meaning in our suffering. When we suffer and continue to trust God, it gives us an opportunity to rely on God for the strength to make it through. It gives us an opportunity to identify with the suffering of Christ himself. There is work yet to do. There are people who rely on you, but even more important than that, you are the image of God in this world. There are people whom God has uniquely positioned you to reach, both by your words and examples. There are people who may not make it safely home to God without your influence in their lives. Remember, “he is not the God of the dead, but of the living” (luke 20:38). He wants us to live for him now, and we all look forward to seeing God, in our flesh, face to face.
View SermonSaints Today with Hope for Tomorrow
If you golf, you may have golf heroes. Woodworkers have woodworking heroes. Cooks have cooking heroes. As Christians, we have Christian heroes that we call “saints.” The point is not that Saints are so much holier than us and therefore must be much closer to God. All Saints were also sinners. Not perfect. The point is that they give us real, concrete examples of what it looks like to live out the Christian faith.
View SermonWhat Do You Do With Seed?
There are three things you can do with seed: consume it, store it, or sow it. Similarly, there are three things that we can do with money: spend it, save it, or give it. We need to do all three of these. We spend regularly on our needs and our wants. This is the easiest of the three. We save for big purchases and for rainy days, this one is a little harder. Finally, we can give, or as Paul puts it, “sow” our money. When we ‘sow’ our money, we invest it in productive work for the sake of others. This is, perhaps, the best use and yet it can be the hardest one to convince ourselves to do. In this sermon, we will look at some of the reasons why God calls us to be generous givers.
View SermonProve It
Where we place our earthly treasure reveals something about what we value in our hearts. How we handle our money has a remarkably formative effect on our hearts, much more powerful than anything we say. For good or for ill. Think for a moment about your annual expenses. Where does your money go? What does it say about what you value? It is easy to make an idol out of money, or out of the things money can buy. Jesus provides us with a different way. Instead of seeking after more and more, Jesus seeks to give more and more.
View SermonLearning to Give Up
Some churches talk about money too much. But it is also a mistake to not talk about money at all. The Bible has lots to say about money and how we use it. Generosity is a heart issue and one that God cares deeply about. God is a generous God. “For God so loved the world, that he gave…” (John 3:16) Jesus gave up his life for us, as we respond to this gift we are called to give up our lives for him, acknowledging him as Lord over every part of our lives, including our wallets. We are made in God’s image—generosity is a part of who we were created to be. We will examine this over the next month by looking at chapters 8-9 of 2 Corinthians.
View SermonFollowing Christ to Serve Those in Need
We are uniquely and wonderfully made in the image of our loving God! We are called into relationship that our lives may be more perfectly transformed by the life of Christ, our Savior. In the parable of the beggar Lazarus and the rich man, Jesus is leading us in the way of God’s love toward those in need. In God’s love for us, Christ gave himself as the undeserved favor for those in need, to grant that which is outside of our power: life, salvation, grace, and mercy. We are called to follow in the way of Christ, in love and consideration of others, from the bounty of God’s blessing and endless resource.
View SermonMen and Women in the Church
How does God want us to hear him? How are we to grow in the ways of quietness and holiness? What is God’s desire for men and women in the church? Today’s Epistle from Timothy 2:1-15 gives us encouragement in prayer, holiness, and godly living. Come to Jesus in prayer, grow in the ways of the Good Shepherd and know God’s peace in your life. I pray this week you would find more time to hear Jesus in the words of His scriptures for He is so good and so loving.
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