Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus. He not only brings hope to a lost world; He is the very hope of God to the world, which all of scripture has been pointing to since the beginning. To celebrate the birth of Jesus is to celebrate God’s faithfulness in fulfilling his promises.
Thanksgiving is not just a holiday. It should be a way of life, as we continually praise God for who He is and what He has done. He is the one, the only one, who is worthy of all of our praise, even in and through the storms of life.
The book of Jonah is full of contrast. The prophet Jonah runs from God, while everyone else in the book runs towards God; Jonah’s response to God has sharply contrasted the response of the pagan sailors and also the response of the wicked people of Nineveh. Here in chapter 4, we see the sharp contrast between the anger of Jonah and the compassion of God.
God is the God of second chances. He is relentless in his loving pursuit of the lost. In chapter 3 of Jonah, we see God’s patience and grace for disobedient Jonah, as well as for the people of Nineveh.
Today we take a brief break from our sermon series on Jonah to focus on our missionary partners from Budapest, Daniel and Christy Kihm. It’s such a blessing to be able to link arms with these faithful missionaries and to be able to support them in their work for God’s Kingdom!
After Jonah’s defiance in running away from God and His call, God uses a great fish to not only save him from the sea but also to provide an opportunity for Jonah to contemplate his decisions and his call. God truly desires obedience over sacrifice and a changed life over empty words.
God calls Jonah to the mission field, to reach the wicked city of Nineveh. Jonah runs away from God and from his call. This sharply contrasts or expectations of a prophet of God, and it also sharply contrasts the pagan sailors who run to God as Jonah runs away.
We conclude our sermon series on hope, looking at Jesus’ response to his disciple, Thomas, as he struggled with doubt. God is not afraid of our questions or our doubts. He doesn’t want empty words, but a true and genuine relationship with us. This requires honesty and trust on our part as we struggle through…
God has a history of calling and empowering the unlikely underdog to do the incredible. This week we look at the inspiring story of David, the young shepherd boy, who stands up to the great champion warrior giant of the Philistines, Goliath of Gath. Your giant may change, but our God remains the same, and he is a giant slayer.
Jesus is the one and only hope for the brokenness of sin. In John 8:1-11 we read of the woman who was caught in the act of adultery, and we see how Jesus responds to this woman in the midst of her brokenness, shame, and need. Jesus, the only perfect and holy one without sin, capable of throwing the first stone, instead offers forgiveness, love, grace, and a changed life. He offers us that same hope today.