My 11/19/23 sermon, The Gospel Works (2 Corinthians 13:11-15), is online. The sermon not only wrapped up our 19-sermon series in 2 Corinthians, but it also helped propel us into Thanksgiving week. The idea behind the sermon was that the Gospel works; that is, when it moves into someone’s life, it affects change. So, we teased out how this was seen in the final benediction of the book. I hope it encourages you.

In the evening, our church enjoyed its annual Thanksgiving dinner together, where we eat, talk, and have a share time where people can share what they are thankful for. Luke and I recorded a Flipside podcast on this very thing, so I’d love for you to engage in that, as well: On Giving Thanks 2023.

I hope you have an enjoyable Thanksgiving week.

My 10/22/23 sermon, Gospel Centering (2 Corinthians 12:1-13), is online. My main point was to show that no matter what Paul faced in life, the good news packed a wallop that made a difference. This centered or balanced life calibrated Paul when his opponents attacked him. And, in the midst of this, I think the sermon encouraged all of us no matter where we’re found in life. I hope it inspires you.

My 10/15/23 sermon at Crestview Bible Church was entitled The Gospel and Church Life from 2 Corinthians 11:1-33. This chapter is complicated because it serves as a defense for Paul’s ministry among the Corinthians. He roots this defense in the content and power of the Gospel, which is at work in him and working out in the lives of all the people it affects. So, this serves as a way to engage the difficulties at play in church life with the good news. I hope you enjoy it.

My 10/8/23 sermon, Working Together In Christ (2 Corinthians 10:1-18), is online. The passage in view is maybe the entire point of the book of 2 Corinthians, where Paul is trying to deal with opponents and how the Corinthian church has received them. What happens in chapter 10 is an all-out appeal to center in Christ. So, this sermon was my attempt to give voice to the Good Shepherd as He invites us into life together in the body. I hope it encourages you.

My 9/17/23 sermon at Crestview, Overwhelmed with Grace (2 Corinthians 9:6-15), is online. The text’s main idea is Paul wrapping up an appeal for the Corinthians to be generous. So, I connected a calling to live generously and how it provokes thanksgiving and makes Jesus shine to how God overwhelms us with grace to invite us into this. I hope it encourages you to bear the fruit of good works.

I was happy to return to the pulpit for a full day at Crestview on September 10, 2023. We had baby dedications, which was both a joyous and sobering day. Joyous recognizing the gift of life that God has given families in our church body. It is sobering to realize the responsibility God has blessed our church family to help little ones know Jesus.

I preached on Gospel Priorities from 2 Corinthians 8:16-9:5. Chapters 8 and 9 of 2 Corinthians explore the Corinthian church’s generous heart related to the gift they were collecting for others. In this middle section, Paul seems to clarify some Gospel priorities that help them live out this generous lifestyle. He’s centered this all on Jesus. So, it made sense that I also centered the appeal on Jesus. I hope the sermon encourages you.

My 8/27/23 sermon at Crestview, When You Walk By The Way (Deuteronomy 6:4-13), wrapped up a short 2-sermon series on Family Discipleship. This series aimed to bring the people of Crestview up close and personal with the reminder that the home is where the work of making disciples begins. I’ve spent much time post-2020 thinking about the mission and what we will give ourselves to do. On Sundays, we’ve done a series in the book of Acts, the Jesus Project, and even how God’s power is displayed in our weakness. This seemed like the right move to remind our body that our zeal to make disciples begins with those around us in the home. I hope this sermon encourages you.

On August 20, 2023, at Crestview, I preached the first installment of a short series on Family Discipleship. The sermon was That the Next Generation Might Know Him (Psalm 78:5-8). This notion of knowing Jesus and making Him known isn’t merely the church’s work (although I wish churches were known as the place where they could know Jesus). Knowing Jesus is part of God’s heart and will for your family. This sermon was my attempt to encourage everyone to move out in grace toward this goal. I hope it encourages you.

If you interact with the video, many students were laughing at a couple of things I did in this sermon like these two snippets:

We all talk about getting to this or that matter of importance “someday.” In this sermon, I tried to show that Jesus’s work of salvation in us is a matter of now, today, or right now. And, the spheres we looked at related to our lives, loves, and our holiness. I hope this sermon, Salvation Is Now (2 Corinthians 6:1-7:1), encourages you.

My 7/30/23 sermon at Crestview, The Art of Persuasion (Not Us, But Him) – 2 Corinthians 5:11- 21, is now online. The big idea was to invite people to believe the fantastic good news found in Jesus. This isn’t just about being a religious zealot or jamming this down people’s throats. God is so rich in mercy that it is unbelievable when people first learn it. So, God has all that needs to be done to make a life lived in relationship to Him possible. I hope the sermon encourages you.