This sermon is part 2 of our 6 part series on reconciliation. In James 4.1-10, we find the source (vv.1-5) and solution (vv.6-10) of conflict. Here we learn that the source of conflict is never the devil, or our biological issues, or other people. Rather the source is always our own sinful desires. We also learn that the solution is humility before God. And James gives us 5 expressions of humility that God desires in our conflict (submitting and drawing near to God, resisting the devil, cleansing and lamenting our sin).

Conflict is unavoidable, even in the church. We desperately need to understand and practice biblical reconciliation. This sermon part 1 of a six part series on reconciliation. Reconciliation can be categorized in two ways: 1) vertical (between us and God) and 2) horizontal (between one another). Before we can practice horizontal reconciliation we must understand vertical reconciliation. In 2 Corinthians 5.17-21, we consider: 1) The Model of Reconciliation, 2) The Ministry of Reconciliation, and 3) The Message of Reconciliation.

In Ephesians 6.10-20, Pastor Ryan Fullerton (Immanuel Baptist, Louisville Kentucky) helps us to understand the person and the work of the devil so that we as the church can stand firm against his evil schemes.

In 1 Timothy 6.20-21, Paul gives Timothy one final charge. He exhorts Timothy to guard the gospel and avoid false teaching. This is something he’s done throughout this letter but as he wraps up he wants to make sure Timothy does not forgot why he’s in Ephesus. In a similar way, every true church and every true christian has been entrusted with the gospel and also must take the responsibility to guard it very seriously. In this sermon we contemplate two big ideas: 1) the Preservation of the Gospel (20-21) and 2) the provision of Grace (21).

Ezekiel 37.1-14 helps us to see that our greatest need is not to turn a new leaf or gain better circumstances or fix all our relational problems. Our greatest need is spiritual life. What we all need is spiritual resurrection. In our text this morning we’re given both a Picture of Resurrection (vv. 1-10) and a Promise of Resurrection (vv.11-14). The main question we must answer in this text is can these bones live? And the answer is an emphatic yes! Because Christ lives, we too can live. In him, we can have resurrection life.

In Matthew 12.14-21, Pastor Ikaika (Hamama Community Church) helps us to see three reasons why we should have confidence in Jesus: 1) Jesus is not distracted but he’s focused on the main thing, 2) Jesus is continuing to work, and 3) Jesus has come to fulfill the salvation plan of God.

In 1 Timothy 6.17-19, we are warned against abusing the good gifts of God and are exhorted to worship the giver and not the gifts. In verse 17, we find two ways to avoid worshiping our wealth: 1) by not becoming proud about our wealth and 2) by not setting our hope in our wealth. Then in verses 18-19, we find four ways to worship God with our wealth: 1) enjoying our wealth as a gift, 2) prioritizing true wealth, 3) sharing our wealth, and 4) storing up heavenly wealth.

Perseverance is one of the hardest things to practice in life. But in 1 Timothy 6.11-16 Paul exhorts Timothy to persevere in gospel-faithfulness. In verses 11-14, we see how Christians persevere (flee worldliness, pursue maturity, fight for the faith, holdfast eternal life, keep the commandment, and remember heaven’s witnesses). Then in verses 15-16, we see two motivations for why Christians persevere (the Son’s appearing and the Father’s glory).

In 1 Timothy 6.6-10, Paul explains how godliness (devotion and conformity to Jesus) and contentment (a happy trust in the sufficiency of Jesus) is great gain. In this text, we can find three reasons why contentment is gain: 1) contentment weans us off this present world, 2) contentment satisfies us in God’s perfect care, 3) contentment delivers us from temporal and eternal ruin.

Titus 3.1-2 teaches us that Christians must work for the good of the place they live. We are exhorted to honor those around us regardless of our status in society. There are three truths we find in our text: 1) a great reminder, 2) our behavior towards authorities, 3) our behavior towards everyone else. 

In 1 Timothy 6.2-5, we find that the church must teach and urge one another in sound doctrine. And if we’re going to do that we must understand two things: 1) the Nature of False Teaching and 2) the Fruit of False Teaching. False Teaching opposes the Lordship of Christ and godliness and it always reaps corruption in our minds and desires.

This past week we lost a dear sister after a year-long grueling battle with cancer. She exemplified what it meant to glorify Jesus in her living and in her dying. And so, in honor of her life and death, we took a break from 1 Timothy to consider two simple truths from Philippians 1.21 to help us follow in her foot steps: 1)to Live is Christ and 2) to Die is Gain.

In 1 Timothy 6.1-2, we find Paul’s instructions to slaves and how they are to relate to their masters. In order to better understand Paul’s approach to slavery, it’s important to understand three perspectives: 1) the historical perspective, 2) the scriptural perspective, and 3) the gospel perspective. The closest application to us today who live in a free society is our relationships to our employers. And in this text Paul gives two motivations for why we should work with excellence and honor our employers: 1) the glory of God and 2) the good of my brother.

The gospel is meant to radically change everything about us. In Titus 2.11-15, Kenny Komatsu helps us understand seven ways the gospel changes people: 1) it saves us, 2) it trains us, 3) it makes us wait eagerly, 4) it redeems us, 5) it purifies us, 6) it motivates us, and lastly 7) it makes us proclaimers.

In 1 Timothy 5.21-25, we continue to consider how the church is called to honor the role and work of Pastors. Last week we saw that we do this by: 1) providing for them, 2) protecting them, and 3) rebuking them. In this sermon we consider one last way to honor the pastor, which is by wisely affirming them. We also consider one big motivation for all this, which is that all of this is done before the witness of heaven.

To kick off the new year, we jump back in our 1 Timothy series looking specifically at 1 Timothy 5.17-20. In this text what we find our three ways that God calls the congregation to honor the pastorate (by pastorate, we mean the office, the work, and the man). The ways we honor the pastorate is by 1) Providing for their needs, 2) Protecting them from false accusations, and 3) Rebuking them before all.

In Luke 2.8-20, we see that the good news of Jesus’ arrival is a gospel of great joy. it’s meant to lead us to rejoicing that overflows into every area of our lives, including in our relationships with unbelievers. In this sermon there are two main ideas that we highlight: 1) Good News (8-12) and 2) Great Joy (13-20).

In Luke 2.1-7, Mike Komatsu helps us to see how the Sovereignty of the Father and the Humility of the Son are put on display through the birth of Christ Jesus.

Everybody knows what exultation looks and feels like because we all exult (celebrate and rejoice) in different things. You were created to exult, but not just in good things, you were created to exult or in the best things. You were made to exult in God. And one of the primary ways we do that is by exulting in God and his faithfulness to his word. In Luke 1.39-80 we find three examples of exultation: 1) Elizabeth and her baby, 2) Mary, and 3) Zachariah. They all exult in God’s faithfulness and the church should follow their example.

In Luke 1.26-38, we find a shocking and glorious announcement. The king that has been promised (like we saw last week in Isaiah 11) has finally arrived. As the son of David he will establish the throne of David, but as the son of the Virgin Mary, he will be so much greater than David. He will be the Son of God, which is evidenced by his miraculous conception by the Spirit in the womb of Mary.