1 Kings 17:1-7Introducing Elijah In this week’s brief passage, Elijah breaks onto the scene and, even with no backstory, it is clear he is a spiritual giant in the same league as Moses, Joseph, David, and John the Baptist. Pastor Todd described Elijah as a man of humble origins, a man of...
1 Kings 16:21-34A Question of Fairness Pastor Austin began by noting the repetitive nature of much of 1 Kings so far: The account of an evil king’s reign is followed by the description of God’s righteous judgment on him. In this week’s passage, however, we hear about the...
1 Kings 16:8-20One Week Is Enough More evil and turmoil in the Northern Kingdom of Israel! King Elah, who should have been on the battlefield but instead was drunk in the capital, is murdered by a mid-level military officer, thus fulfilling the prophecy against Elah’s father, Baasha...
1 Kings 15:25 – 16:7Power, Politics, and Providence In the Northern Kingdom of Israel, Nadab, son of Jeroboam, reigned only two years before he was assassinated by a rival, Baasha. One of Baasha’s first acts as king was to kill everyone belonging to the house of Jeroboam, thus...
1 Kings 15:1-24Rehoboam’s Successors The stories of King Abijam of Judah and his son who succeeded him, Asa, illustrate the tension between man’s responsibility and God’s sovereignty in the context of parenting. Abijam failed in his responsibility to teach his son to love the...
Revelation 19:11-21Blowout The account of the sixth bowl of judgment in 16:12-16 sets the stage for the great battle of Armageddon, and this week’s passage tells us what will happen on that Day. The kings of the earth and the two beasts in the service of the dragon, Satan, are arrayed...
Revelation 19:1-10Hallelujah!Hallelujah is a mash-up of two Hebrew words that together mean Praise the God of Israel. Pastor Dave began by noting that it is often hard for us to praise God, to worship Him, because we are self-absorbed, like a child who can’t celebrate a sibling’s...
Revelation 18:20-24Babylon is no more … Rejoice! The instruction to the redeemed in this week’s passage is to rejoice over the judgment of the great city, Babylon, which is figurative language for idolatry. In contrast, the response of unredeemed earth-dwellers in verses 9-19...
Revelation 18:1-8Babylon is going down; come out! Way back in Revelation 6:10, the souls of martyrs ask, “O Sovereign Lord, how long before you judge?” We echo the question and want to right wrongs now, by human means. In this week’s passage, the long-awaited judgment on...
Matthew 25:31-46Revelation (vv34-34) + Fostering Hope (vv35-40) + Salvation (vv41-46) With many guests present for Fostering Hope Sunday, Pastor Dave took pains to explain salvation. He preached from the “sheep and goats” passage in Matthew 25, which can cause confusion about...