The Lord is coming! How can we prepare for his arrival? The prophet Isaiah tells us that our lives need to be leveled and straightened to make them like a great highway. For the Lord to travel straight into our hearts, the call is to repentance.

Luke 3:1-6

3 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, ² during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. ³ And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁴ As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,^[a]
    make his paths straight.
⁵ Every valley shall be filled,
    and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall become straight,
    and the rough places shall become level ways,
⁶ and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”

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Sermon from Luke 1:26-38

Upon being told by the angel Gabriel that she was going to bear the Son of God, Mary’s response was profound. She said:

Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.

Luke 1:38

The more we study the Scripture, the more we see that it is a unified story. The plan of God begins in Genesis and ends in Revelation, but it is one story with one master plan of God that unfolds throughout. At our place in history, we are able to see that a lot of it has already unfolded, but many of the people we read about in the Bible understood much less about God’s plan than we do today.

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Sermon on John the Baptist

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him.

John 1:6-7

John the Baptist was the first believer and receiver of the Gospel. He was sent by God to be the first one, the first to believe in Jesus and the first to bear witness about him. The word “witness” is a legal term, someone who gives testimony in court. Those who came to John expected him to give true witness of who he was and what he believed, and he did so with no hesitation.

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Sermon from Mark 1:1-8

Whenever I read the Gospel of Mark, I like to think about how this Gospel came about. The Book of Acts, chapter 10, tells of how the Apostle Peter was in the city of Joppa and had a vision. Through this vision, Peter was told by God that he was to go to the home of a leading Gentile, Cornelius, and preach the Gospel to him and his household. Upon sharing the truth of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, Cornelius and his entire household were saved and received the Holy Spirit.

Mark was a traveling companion of Peter on his missionary journeys, and he heard Peter tell the story over and over again in just this way and to just this effect. So when people asked for a written account so they could continue to think about it when Peter wasn’t present, Mark was commissioned to write Peter’s account of the Gospel, the story of Jesus. It’s a powerful message that announces a marvelous thing.

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Sermon for the First Sunday of Advent

I love the approach of the Church to the season of Advent, as we compare the “gentle Jesus meek and mild” of the first Advent to the Almighty King whose second coming we anticipate. It requires some thoughtful perspective-taking.

Throughout the book of Job, Job learns that he just doesn’t understand the mighty and wonderful plans that God is working out through the devastating events that he sees happening in his own life. He learns to see things through a heavenly perspective. He says:

I know that you can do all things,
    and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
    things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 

Job 42:2-3

Jesus also speaks about the signs of the end of the age from a heavenly perspective in Luke, chapter 21. The events he describes are apocalyptic, but he describes it as a time of “power and great glory” (verse 27). He reminds His hearers that even when we are surrounded by distress, perplexity, and devastation, Christ rules over it all, and He will hold the absolute victory. 

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Luke 21:33

We have times and seasons in our lives that are distressing and uncomfortable. We can’t put our faith in people and institutions, but we can ALWAYS put our faith in Jesus Christ. His promises are absolutely certain and sure. Be careful to guard your heart and not turn to anything else but Him. Everything else WILL disappoint. Pray, hold your head high, and trust only in Him.

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