Sound Words

What is the secret to the success of God’s kingdom?  You might think of miraculous events or heroic acts by talented individuals.  In I Samuel 10, we find that God normally works through common, everyday events to accomplish his amazing purposes.  Christians face the temptation of pitying themselves for the boring lives they lead, while God wants us to focus on his promises in every situation.  Listen as Pastor David calls us to see unstoppable word of God as the true secret of God’s kingdom.

Real power is unsettling.  Seeing the sovereign authority of God should always produce godly fear.  However, the Philistines failed to learn this lesson.  After experiencing the judgment of God, instead of turning from their idolatry, they simply sent the ark of the covenant back to Israel and went back to worshiping a defeated Dagon.  

But are we any different when we simply respond to the pain of the situation and not the truth of it?  When God takes us through difficulties, do we learn to trust Him more?  Are we made uncomfortably humble by His power?  Listen as Pastor David shows us how pain, suffering, and humiliation leads to glory from 1 Samuel 6. 

Do you serve a Humpty-Dumpty divinity?  The Scripture tells the story of the God who is sovereign over all things. He is not safe.  He cannot be used like a magic charm or a cosmic atm.  And men do nothing to add to his glory.  In I Samuel 5, the Israelites and Philistines have been serving God as though He could be stored away until they decided he was needed.  But God declares himself to be the King who must be served all the time with all our lives.  Listen as Pastor David gives a picture of the awesome God who stands over the kingdoms of this world in Christ.       

You’re in the supermarket and a little girl asks her mom for a sucker.  “No.”  The girl proceeds to entreat her mom with promises of obedience and arguments about the joy of candy.  Finally, she wins the day with a pouty lip and a feeble “please.”  We have no problem spotting manipulation when we see it.  Or do we?  Have you ever offered God more prayers, church attendance, or a moral life, if he would only change your circumstances?   In 1 Samuel 4, we find that God is not an object to be used.  Listen as Pastor David calls us to give up on our own efforts and trust God.

What if no one ever spoke to you?  How would that affect the relationships that you have?  Would your marriage and friendships suffer?  We need words to function in relationships.  In this sermon, Pastor David encourages us that the sovereign God of the universe has not remained silent.  In fact, even the judgment of God can be a gracious act.  A God who speaks to his people, whether in discipline or blessing, is a God who cares.  Listen as Pastor David explains how Christ has ended the silence forever.

Do you want your next president to be a colossal failure?  Are you hopeful that he will break every one of those shining campaign promises and run this nation into the ground?  No, I didn’t think so.  Whatever you feel about the present candidates, you wish that someone would emerge as a strong and honest leader to serve the interests of this nation.  You want something to change for the better.  In I Samuel 2:11-36, Pastor David explains that God never fails to keep his promises.  No matter how badly the leaders of this world fail, God never quits working out his plan.  Listenas Pastor David calls us to remember that God has given Christ as the ultimate leader and the fulfillment of all the promises in Scripture.