The opening message of a six-to-eight-week series on what the church is, beginning in Matthew 16:13-18 with Peter's confession of Jesus as the Christ and Jesus' declaration to build his church, framed by reflections on denominational unity across diverse congregations.
Listen & readMessages
Brian preaches on kindness from Luke 6:32-36, distinguishing genuine kindness from mere niceness and showing how loving enemies and doing good without expecting return reflects the character of God, who is kind even to the ungrateful and evil.
Listen & readAn Epiphany message on the wise men from Matthew 2, contrasting the magi's worship of the newborn king with Herod's tunnel-vision violence and his advisors who knew Scripture yet missed Jesus, warning against being too absorbed in our own agendas to see what God is doing.
Listen & readContinuing the Christmas characters series, a message on Simeon from Luke 2:21-35, covering Jesus' circumcision and the covenant with Abraham, Mary and Joseph's temple sacrifices, and Simeon's Spirit-led recognition of the Lord's Christ.
Listen & readA Christmas message on the shepherds in the nativity story from Luke 2, examining the context of shepherds keeping watch at night, the possible lambing season and sacrificial-lamb connection, and what their role reveals about Jesus' birth.
Listen & readAn Advent reflection on the theme of joy, drawn from Nehemiah 8:9-12 and the declaration that the joy of the Lord is the people's strength, given as a gift rather than earned, featuring a conversation with guests Carol Forrest and Brian Carlson.
Listen & readAn Advent reflection on the theme of love, exploring Paul's description of love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 as a measuring stick fulfilled in Jesus, featuring a conversation with guests Carol Forrest and Brian Carlson.
Listen & readAn Advent week-two reflection on the theme of peace, drawn from John 14:25-27 and Jesus' promise of the Holy Spirit as helper and the gift of his peace, featuring a conversation with guests Carol Forrest and Brian Carlson.
Listen & readAn Advent week-one reflection on the theme of hope, centered on Romans 5 and the certainty of standing in grace and rejoicing in suffering, featuring a conversation with guests Carol Forrest and Brian Carlson.
Listen & readAn Advent message on the Christmas story in Luke 2, noting that the traditional "innkeeper" is not actually mentioned in Scripture, and contrasting the powerful Caesar Augustus with the humble, anonymous setting of Jesus' birth.
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