September 6, 2026 - How Would They Know

Scripture Reading — John 15:1–2 (KJV)

1   I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

2   Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

Sermon Summary

Coming Together to Stand in the Gap

It is always good to be in the house of God and in the presence of God’s people. We gather on Sunday to be encouraged, empowered, and strengthened for the battles that wait for us Monday through Saturday. Even when our own testimonies are strong, Rev. Johnson reminded us, some among us are in the trenches, facing storms both seen and unexpected. He lifted up Brother Walter, who is back in the hospital, and pressed a truth we forget too easily: it could have been any one of us. Just as Jesus told Peter that the devil desired to sift him as wheat — “but I have prayed for thee” — we are called to pray for one another, and to do it now, not later. Prayer is the most powerful tool God has placed in our hands, yet too often we treat it like nothing. So before the message went forward, the church family paused to agree together in prayer for Brother Walter.

A Disclaimer Before the Message

Rev. Johnson opened with an honest disclaimer. There was a time when faithful attendance — Sunday service, Bible study, Sunday school — was enough for people to assume you were a Christian. But the Word sets a higher bar. Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman,” and every branch in Him is expected to bear fruit. Titles, membership, and a full calendar of church activity are good things, but they are not the evidence Scripture is looking for. The real question is simple and searching: how would the people around you actually know that you belong to Christ?

How Would They Know?

To make the point, the preacher reached back to the days of the Underground Railroad, when certain signs told a traveler who could be trusted — and a wrong guess could cost a life. Jesus sent His disciples out as sheep among wolves, warning that the journey would be dangerous. The trouble in our world today, Rev. Johnson said, is that when believers go out among people, no one can tell who they are. A cross around the neck, an emblem on the car, a sign on the wall — all fine in their place, but the world needs to see Christ in our conversation and our conduct, not just in what we wear or hang up.

Show Up for Duty

Our pews are emptier than they should be, and the preacher refused to let us blame anyone but ourselves. The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few — not because workers are scarce, but because too many refuse to go. Every empty seat was meant to hold somebody’s son, somebody’s daughter, somebody’s crying soul. When God writes us into the day’s script, we do not get to scratch our name out. Rev. Johnson told on himself: driving to an appointment this week, he felt the Spirit tug at a man walking along the road, argued with God, passed him by, then turned around. “Are you picking me up?” the man asked — he had been passed by so many people that he had nearly given up. That, said the preacher, is fruit dying on the vine because Christians will not do the job they were called to do. Sometimes the right thing is not a sermon; it is simply showing up, being present, showing yourself friendly. Paul planted and Apollos watered, but God gives the increase — each of us only has to do our part.

Judgment Day and the Question of Fruit

The message turned sober. In Revelation 20, the books are opened and people are judged by their works. Rev. Johnson pressed us with the parable of the talents: the servant who buried his one talent did nothing, and even that was taken from him, while the faithful were multiplied. On that day no mama, daddy, grandparent, or pastor can answer for us. We will stand before the throne, and the Son will be asked, “Do you know him?” The most important payoff for serving the Lord is not in this life — it is hearing “come up higher” rather than “depart from me.”

Who Are You Connected To?

Rev. Johnson closed with the question the whole sermon had been circling: who are you connected to — God, or the enemy? The wrong connection wakes up and never says thank you, though God woke us, clothed us in our right mind, fed us, and kept the roof holding through the night. The right connection may not have all the answers, but it lets God teach and use it anyway, going out afraid yet saying, “Lord, use me.” It gives thanks in the aches and pains, for sight that reaches ten feet if not a hundred, for food on the table even when the meal is not what we wanted. It remembers that we are here only by a favor we never earned. And it learns to give God glory not only on Sunday or on payday, but in the valley — because once you can shout in the valley, you know what it means to serve a good and living God.

Key Takeaways

•   Fruit, not activity, is the proof. Coming to church, Bible study, and Sunday school are good, but the world should be able to see Christ in your words and actions — otherwise, how would they know?

•   Pray now, not later. Prayer is the greatest tool God has given us; don’t wait until Sunday to stand in the gap for a brother or sister in the storm.

•   Show up for duty. When God places someone in your path, don’t scratch your name out of the script — sometimes the ministry is simply being present.

•   We will be judged by our works. Like the servant who buried his one talent, a gift left unused bears no fruit; what we offer God, He multiplies.

•   Stay connected to the right One. Give God thanks and glory in every season — even in the valley — and be the kind of Christian others know they can come to.

August 30, 2026 - The Two Roads of Life

Scripture Reading — Matthew 7:12–14 (KJV)

12   Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.

13   Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

14   Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Sermon Summary

God Is Good, All the Time

Evangelist Audrey Kinney opened the way so many of the saints do, with a word of pure thanksgiving. God is good, she reminded us — not some of the time, but all the time. In a lonely and perilous world, He has been a faithful companion, the One who took her feet out of the miry clay and set them on a rock. Out of that gratitude came the question that would carry the whole message: of the two roads set before every one of us, which road will you take?

Two Roads, One Choice

The picture of the two gates comes straight from Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. He set a wide gate beside a narrow gate — two paths leading to two very different eternal destinations. As Reverend Seth used to say, there are only ever two ways: right or wrong, good or evil, the way to heaven and the way to hell. Every person who has ever lived must make a clear choice about how they will live, and no one can make it for them. It is your thing to do, the evangelist said; the decision belongs to you.

The Broad Road

The broad road, the Bible says, leads to destruction, and many go in through it. Why so many? Because its gate stands right before our eyes; it is wide, easy to find, and nothing bars the way. It is a road that can be traveled without a single thought — the way of the world. Sister Kinney pictured it like the interstate: so wide you can do almost anything on it, drift over to the casino, exit at the barroom, and never feel you have wandered off course.

It is crowded with attractive, enticing things, and John warned us plainly that all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father. She remembered the old song about a girl who left a good home to see the world and have her fun, not knowing she would meet a man called King Heroin. That is the broad road: the careless who no longer mind what they say or who hears it, the undisciplined, the materialistic who live only for their own comfort — all going along with the crowd with no thought of heaven.

The Wages, and the Way Back

Paul left no doubt about where that road ends. The works of the flesh — immorality, idolatry, drunkenness, strife, and the rest — belong to those who will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the evangelist did not leave anyone stranded there. If some of those things are yours, she said, get on your knees and confess, for if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Just a little talk with Jesus will make it right. Tell God about the wrong attitude, the wrong look, the wrong thought, and let Him fix it — for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Narrow Gate

Then there is the narrow gate. If the broad road is the interstate, the narrow road is more like Highway 40 — full of curves and turns and signs that read danger, watch yourself. It is a road less traveled, because it is hard and it asks for commitment. You may not have wanted to get up this morning, but this road calls for determination: I am determined to see Jesus, determined to learn of His word, to take His yoke and find that His burden is light.

It is a path of obedience and self-denial, where the things you used to do, you do no more. Paul reminded us that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers and spiritual wickedness in high places — so the way is narrow, sometimes so narrow it can hardly be seen. You have to seek it out diligently, choosing to be humble and to carry forgiveness in your heart. And you enter it by one door: repentance — a change of mind, a change of heart, a change of behavior.

The Way Is a Person

To make it plain, the evangelist told of Brother Leroy — “Tut” to those who love him — who once traveled the broad road all the way to a prison cell. The drugs promised a high he chased and never caught again, until the day he could finally say, the things I used to do, I don’t want to do them no more. He turned from the wide gate toward the narrow one, and the whole church rejoiced with him. For the narrow gate is not really a thing at all; it is a Person. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but by Him. There is no other road to heaven. As Uncle Bossy used to say, the way is so plain that a fool cannot err and a blind man cannot miss the path — if we will only take it.

Which Road Will You Take?

So the message came back around to its one great question: which road will you take this morning? Jesus has already given us everything we need to inherit the kingdom. He died on the cross, shed His own precious blood, rose on the third day, and sits now at the right hand of the Father with all power in His hand — and one day He is coming back for His own. Like Joshua, we can answer, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. The narrow road is hard, and weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning; payday is coming for all who faint not. Hold on, the evangelist urged, to God’s unchanging hand — and choose the road that leads to life.

Key Takeaways

•   Every life runs down one of two roads. Jesus set a wide gate beside a narrow one, and each of us must choose which way we will live — no one can choose for us.

•   The broad road is easy, crowded, and deadly. It asks nothing of us and leads to destruction; the way of the world always costs more than it promises.

•   The narrow road is hard, but it leads to life. It calls for commitment, self-denial, and daily repentance — a change of mind, heart, and action.

•   The narrow gate is Jesus Himself. He is the only way to the Father, and He has already done everything needed for us to enter.

•   You can turn around today. Confess, hold on to God’s unchanging hand, and choose the road that leads home.

August 23, 2026 - Caught in a Storm

Scripture Reading — Matthew 14:22–33 (KJV)

22   And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.

23   And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.

24   But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.

25   And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.

26   And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.

27   But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

28   And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

29   And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

30   But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

31   And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

32   And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.

33   Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.

Sermon Summary

Give God the Honor First

The message began not with a point but with praise. He woke us up this morning, clothed us in our right mind, put food on the table when we were hungry and a cool glass of water in our hands when we were thirsty — and for all of that, the first thing owed is thanks. Before a single word about storms, the prayer was that the preacher would be hidden behind the cross, so that the church would hear and see only God. It set the tone for everything that followed: this is not about any one of us, but about the Lord who made our salvation possible at Calvary.

A Storm Is Something That Rearranges Things

A storm, we were reminded, is a change in the atmosphere — a stirring, a moving that rearranges things. So the question worth sitting with is this: what in your life needs to be moved today? What is buried deep down that needs to come to the surface? Every one of us knows something about storms. Either you are in one, coming out of one, or on your way into one. And they are not only out on the oceans and seas; some of the fiercest storms are raging quietly in the hearts of people all around us.

Storms Come to Clean Us Up

There was the memory of a terrible storm back in Hammond — the kind that would skip one house and tear into the next, that took the life of a neighbor, Miss Cornelius, and left a cousin clinging to a light pole just to keep from being blown away. As frightening as that was, it carried a lesson never forgotten: storms come to clean up. They clean out attitudes, pride, unforgiveness, and sin. They humble us so we can become the children God wants us to be. Without them we would grow self-sufficient, convinced we do not need God, content to live on flower beds of ease like the rich fool who said, “take ease, eat, drink, and be merry.” David knew better: “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn thy statutes.” There is purpose in the storm — it is where we come to know Jesus and the power of His resurrection.

Even Jesus Needed to Pray

Look closely at the text and you notice that Jesus was not in the boat. He sent the disciples on ahead, dismissed the crowd, and went up the mountain alone — because He needed to pray. Having just fed the five thousand, He was poured out and spiritually drained; even the Lord needed to be refueled by God. If that was true for Him, how much more is it true for us. If we pray, we will stay; if we fast, we will last. Remember how the whole nation prayed after the towers fell on that September morning — and how quickly we let prayer slip once the crisis had passed. Prayer is the greatest power we have for the challenges of this life. Men ought always to pray, and not to faint. Are you asking? Are you abiding? Are you praying?

Caught in the Storm

The disciples set out with good intentions and full obedience, probably still marveling — “what manner of man is this?” — over two fish, five loaves, and twelve baskets of fragments left over. And still they were caught in a storm. We know that place. There are financial storms and marital storms, family storms and the storm of shattered dreams, the storm of sickness and the storm of losing someone we love. Tossed to and fro in the fourth watch of the night, somewhere between three and six in the morning, in the dark with nothing to hold onto, they forgot that the One they were straining to reach was already Master of the sea. That is our mistake too: we make our problems bigger than our God, instead of coming to Him and saying, “I have a problem that only You can solve.”

Let the Storm Fuel Your Faith

A storm is meant to be fuel for our faith, not the end of it — for faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Prayer changes things: while you are still trying to figure it out, God has already worked it out. The storm will last only as long as it takes God to accomplish His purpose, and no longer — because the one He holds in the palm of His hand, the devil in hell cannot pluck out. Be like the eagle, who does not run from the storm but sets its wings, watches it, catches the very eye of it, and rises straight up into the wind. Jesus is greater than any storm — a very present help in trouble, a shelter in the time of storm, a rock in a weary land. He sees your tears and your restless nights, so cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

The One Who Calms the Storm

It all comes back to Jesus, who calms our doubts and our fears the same way He calmed the sea. This is the One who was led from judgment hall to judgment hall, crowned with thorns, pierced in the side, who hung from the sixth hour to the ninth and never said a mumbling word — and who, hanging between two thieves, still had room at the cross for the one who simply said, “Lord, remember me.” When He cried “It is finished,” it was not the end but a commission: go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost — and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. We have work to do. So brag on Him — the Lily of the Valley, the bright and morning star, the Lion of Judah. If you are caught in a storm this morning, He is all of that and more.

Key Takeaways

•   A storm is God rearranging things. Ask what in your life needs to be moved, and let the storm bring buried things to the surface where they can be dealt with.

•   Storms clean us up and draw us close. They humble our pride and unforgiveness and teach us to lean on God instead of settling into flower beds of ease.

•   Prayer is our greatest power. Even Jesus withdrew to pray — if we pray we will stay, so do not let prayer slip once the crisis has passed.

•   Do not make your problem bigger than your God. The disciples forgot Jesus was Master of the sea; bring the storm to the One who can speak peace to it.

•   Faith rises like an eagle. Jesus is greater than any storm — a shelter, a rock, a present help — and the storm lasts only as long as God’s purpose requires.

August 16, 2026 - Hunger and Thirst After Righteousness

Scripture Reading — Matthew 5:1–12 (KJV)

1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:

2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Sermon Summary

A Blessing Built on a Longing

With the pastor away, Evangelist Kinney stepped up to preach, trusting that she had been taught well and that God would do the rest. She settled the whole message on a single verse—Matthew 5:6—“Blessed are they which hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.” To hunger and thirst after righteousness, she explained, is simply to want to do what the Lord says: to pray, to obey, to live a life that pleases him. Jesus reached for a picture everyone understands—eating and drinking—to describe a desire that is entirely spiritual.

The Appetite of the Soul

God made the human heart so that it stays incomplete until he takes his rightful place in it. Fine homes, cars, and positions can pile up and still leave the soul empty, she said; there is a “little piece of God” in every person that yearns after its Creator, and nothing else will do. The inner man has real senses that must be fed—eyes that need to be opened, ears that need to hear his voice, a taste that discovers the Lord is good. Solomon put it plainly: God has set eternity in our hearts, a longing that reaches past this passing world.

Jesus, the Bread and the Living Water

The answer to that hunger is not a thing but a Person. Jesus called himself the bread of life—unlike the manna of old that left people needing more, whoever comes to him will never hunger again. At the well he offered a woman living water and promised that whoever drinks it will never thirst. As naturally as a deer pants after the water brook, Kinney reminded the congregation, the human soul was made to thirst after God.

Hungering for the Wrong Things

It is a sad thing, she warned, when people hunger for the wrong things. The prodigal son chased excitement in a far country, and it left him a slave; only when he came home and submitted to his father did he live like a king again. So many hollow out “broken cisterns that hold no water,” running after what they can never keep. She spoke of a funeral the day before, and how much of what people chase—greed, keeping up with the Joneses, being seen—simply does not matter in the end. Only what we do for Christ will last, so seek first the kingdom of God, and everything else will be added.

A Hunger That Sends You Out

A real appetite for God does not sit still; it drives you to serve. Just as physical hunger sends you looking for food, a hunger for righteousness makes you ask each morning, “Lord, what would you have me do today?”—whom to visit, whom to lift up off a long prayer list. Somebody once prayed for us, she reminded the church, and now the work is ours: to go out to a dying world and tell someone about Jesus. When a believer’s path crosses an unbeliever’s, that is a divine opportunity, because the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Living to See Him

Kinney’s heart turned toward the Lord’s return. The signs are all around us, she said; when we see these things, we are to look up, for our redemption draws near. She wants to run toward him on that day, not away—to see with her own eyes the One who bled and died and rose again. Until then the marching orders stand: go and teach all nations, and know that he is with us always, even to the end of the world.

Ask Him, Trust Him, Give Him the Glory

So much is missed, she said, simply because “we have not because we ask not.” Whatever you long for this morning—saving, comfort, even provision—call on him and trust him, leaning not on your own understanding but acknowledging him in all your ways. She recalled that even Elvis, crowned “the king,” pointed past himself: there is only one King, God Almighty, and he will not share his glory with another. “For God I live and for God I die,” she closed—blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Key Takeaways

•  Righteousness is a hunger—a real appetite of the soul that only God can satisfy. Material things never will.

•  Jesus is the bread of life and the fountain of living water; whoever comes to him will never hunger or thirst again.

•  Only what we do for Christ will last, so seek first the kingdom and loosen our grip on what we cannot take with us.

•  A true hunger for God turns outward—into prayer, into service, and into telling a dying world about Jesus.

•  We have not because we ask not. Call on him, trust him, and give him the glory that belongs to him alone.

August 9, 2026 - Are Y0u Ready to Die?

Scripture Reading — Revelation 20:11–15 (KJV)

11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Sermon Summary

Start Every Day Giving Honor to God

Rev. Johnson opened with a reminder about how blessed we truly are, even when we take so much for granted. Hundreds, maybe thousands, laid down last night and were not able to answer to the call of their name this morning — and yet we woke up and complained about moving slow. But moving slow is a blessing next to not moving at all. His challenge was simple: when your eyes open to a day you have never seen before, the first words out of your mouth ought to be honor and thanks to God, who is the Lord of your life.

A Courtroom No One Escapes

On the surface, none of us wants to hear the question — we are not ready to check out just yet. But that decision has already been made. Reading Revelation 20 in a new light, Rev. Johnson explained that this particular text is speaking about those who are not saved. Judgment day is as certain as a sentencing date on a court calendar: the verdict is in, and the appointed day only reveals the weight of it. The sea gave up its dead, the grave gave up its dead, and even those already in torment had to come back up for judgment. Nobody is excused from that courtroom.

Works: Something Behind Your Name

His first point was works. There are two kinds — Christian works and the empty works of a life apart from God. Those of us who profess to be Christians ought to have some works behind our name, so that when that day comes we are not standing in that line. When the pastor asks for help, “let me pray on it” can sound spiritual, but it doesn’t hold any water. Once you have truly been saved, there ought to be a fire burning so hot on the inside that it drives you out to serve — just like the woman at the well, who ran back to tell everyone about the man who told her all about herself. There is plenty of work waiting, in the house of God and out on the streets. The harvest is plenty but the laborers are few, so make yourself available. You may not love every task, just as you work a job you don’t love because it pays the bills — but this work pays a bill that keeps your name off that list. And God does not hold yesterday against you; from this day forward, carry a new attitude.

Time Is Not Your Friend

The second point was time. An eighty-year-old grandfather told his granddaughter that tomorrow is not promised — and then reminded her that today is not promised either, though we still act like it is. We treat time like a free resource. Why does it take some of us until sixty-five or seventy to realize how precious it is? Rev. Johnson pleaded with the young not to say, “I’ll get right with God when I’m forty or fifty.” Walk through any cemetery and you will find as many short graves as long ones. Time is not your friend, and only you can decide how you spend it.

The Call

The third point was the call. When God sends the death angel, He gives your exact address. It makes no difference whether you are at Walmart, at the park, or driving your car — the call will find you, and at that moment your life is officially over and the book closes. It is not enough simply to come to church; the church is a hospital, but if you walk in one way and leave the same way, never taking hold of the Word or carrying it to the highways and byways, what was the purpose? Methuselah lived nearly a thousand years, and still no one can tell you what he did with them. Don’t let that be your testimony — that you enjoyed God’s health, strength, and blessings but never asked what you could do for Him. Like the rich man who lifted his eyes in torment, the regret of a wasted life comes too late to change.

There’s Room at the Cross

Rev. Johnson closed at Calvary, with the two thieves crucified beside Jesus. Both mocked Him at first. But one man’s ear got unclogged just long enough to hear — perhaps he heard Jesus pray for the very people who nailed Him there, or watched Him tenderly place His mother into John’s care. That thief turned and said, “We deserve what we are getting, but this man has done nothing wrong,” and then prayed the shortest prayer in the Bible: “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He had no works, his time had run out, and the death angel had already called his name — but he found there was still room at the cross. There is nothing to the cross, nothing to death, nothing to time or work, as long as Jesus is right there with you.

So — Are You Ready?

That is how the question gets answered. If you have done the work, used your time, answered the call, and given your life to the Savior, then your name is written in the Lamb’s book of life — and yes, you are ready to die. To God be the glory. As the old song says, “I don’t have to worry where I spend eternity.”

Key Takeaways

•  Every day is a gift. Start it by giving honor to God, remembering that many did not wake to see it.

•  The judgment of Revelation 20 is real and unavoidable — but this text speaks to the unsaved. Christians ought to make sure their names are written in the book of life.

•  Faith produces works. Once you are saved, let a holy fire drive you to serve in God’s house and to witness on the streets — there ought to be works behind your name.

•  Time is not promised and not your friend. Don’t wait for “someday” to get right with God; the graveyard is full of short graves as well as long ones.

•  There is always room at the cross. Like the thief beside Jesus, even a life with no works can be saved by turning to Christ — nothing about death can harm you when He is with you.

July 19, 2026 - You Can’t Afford Not to Go

Scripture Reading — Jonah 4:1–3 (KJV)

1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.

2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.

3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.

Sermon Summary

A Responsibility We Can't Ignore

Rev. Johnson opened by reminding us that being a child of God carries a responsibility that runs deeper than we often imagine. He pointed to the woman at the well, who after her encounter with Jesus didn't keep the good news to herself. She went straight back into the city and told everybody about the man who had told her all about herself — she had a revival on her own. The point was simple: there are still people outside these doors who want to know how we made it. If we never go back to reach them, teach them, or simply talk to them, we risk giving the impression that we're up on a high horse, as if this gospel is something only a few can have.

The Hard Walk Back Through the Door

He spoke tenderly about how difficult it is for someone to return to church after years away. It takes prayer from the congregation and real courage from the person walking in. The devil plants a thought in their spirit that everyone is watching, wondering why they came and whether they came for the right reason — to the point that they can't even enjoy the Word. But we serve a God who deals with the brokenhearted, and our job is to make that person feel they belong.

When You Understand but Won't Go

Turning to the text, Rev. Johnson reminded us that God told Jonah to go to Nineveh — a city that had long been an enemy of God's people, with a history of doing wrong. When God gives that kind of assignment, all you can do is pack your bags and go. The real problem, he said, is understanding exactly what God wants and still refusing to do it. That's not confusion; that's defiance. He tied this to forgiveness: when we operate out of a spirit of pain and won't let go, we're standing against God's own Word. Loving those who have hurt us is one of the hardest things a believer is asked to do, but God specializes in taking out the stony, cold heart and putting in a heart of gold — one connected back to Jesus, who even on the cross prayed, “Forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Witnessing Through the Pain

To show what that kind of forgiveness looks like, he shared the story of a man whose only child was murdered. That father went to the prison and told the young man who did it, “I forgive you.” It wasn't easy, and he didn't pretend it was. But through his anger and grief he came to understand the price that had been paid for his own soul — that God could recreate in him a clean heart and give him the power to love, even there. That, Rev. Johnson said, is our duty and our responsibility.

Just Tell Them Your Story

So what do we actually say to people? Just tell them the story. Too many folks believe we're somehow different or stronger than they are. We may be a little stronger because we made the right decision, but it wasn't long ago that we walked in the very same shoes. He painted a vivid picture from his school days — the old fights behind the gym, the stick balanced on the shoulder, the line drawn in the dirt — and how, once the fight was over, there was a sense of morality: you shook hands and it was done. Young people need to hear that we were once hardheaded too, that we did wrong, and that we learned the hard way there was something bigger than us.

One Day in Nineveh

He then walked us through Jonah's whole journey — running to Tarshish, the three miserable days in the belly of the fish with weeds wrapped around his neck (nothing like the tidy cartoon), his prayer, and his release. Given the message a second time, Jonah made a three-day journey in a single day, and 120,000 souls were snatched from the gates of hell — one of the greatest evangelists in the Bible, even though his heart wasn't fully in it. Afterward Jonah sat pouting on the east side of the city. God grew a gourd to shade him, then sent a worm to kill it, and when Jonah got angry over the plant, God asked the question that lands on all of us: you had pity for a gourd that came up overnight — shouldn't I have pity for 120,000 souls?

Re-Evaluating Our Contract With God

Rev. Johnson closed by urging us to take inventory. God saves people to save people, and a believer's number one job is to win souls for Christ. Remember where God brought you from — you could have been in a cold grave, but God made the death angel behave. Someone out there needs to hear that you were once down and out too. So save them a seat, welcome them at the door, and tell them what your God can do. The price is high. We cannot afford not to go.

Key Takeaways

•  God saves people to save people. A believer's number one job is to win souls — and staying quiet about what God has done for us isn't an option.

•  Understanding God's assignment and refusing it isn't confusion; it's defiance. That includes refusing to forgive those who have hurt us.

•  Real witnessing often comes through pain. Like the father who forgave his child's killer, God can give us a clean heart and the power to love our enemies.

•  The most powerful thing you can offer someone is your own story: “I was once just like you.”

•  Like Jonah's single day in Nineveh, God can do far more through a willing — even reluctant — servant than we imagine. Welcome people in and tell them what God can do.

July 12, 2026 - What’s Love Got to Do With It

Scripture Reading — John 13:34–35 (KJV)

34  A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

35  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Sermon Summary

More Than What You See

Rev. Jeffery Johnson opened in John 13, moving past the verses read earlier in the service to land on verses 34 and 35, where Jesus tells His disciples, “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another as I have loved you.” He said we're often quick to judge love by what shows on the outside — how someone looks or carries themselves — without ever considering what's happening in their heart. He pointed to the example so many in the room received from parents and grandparents raised in Christian homes: no matter how fierce the argument between siblings, the instruction was always the same — go make up, shake hands. That instinct to reconcile, he said, wasn't invented by our parents. It came straight from Jesus.

A Towel and a Basin

He set the scene: hours before His death, Jesus entered the upper room and no one had done the customary courtesy of washing the dust from His feet. Rather than complain, Jesus wrapped a towel around His waist, knelt, and washed the feet of each disciple Himself — including Judas, who within hours would betray Him. Rev. Johnson lingered there: Jesus knew exactly what Judas was about to do and washed his feet anyway, fully and sincerely. It's easy, he said, to go through the motions of loving someone — showing up, saying the right words — while your heart stays closed off. “If your heart's not in it, you still won't get credit.”

Forgive — and Really Let It Go

This was the sermon's sharpest turn. Rev. Johnson took direct aim at a phrase he's heard from believers for years: “I forgive, but I won't forget.” He called it one of the emptiest things a Christian can say, because real forgiveness — the kind God extends to us — removes sin “as far as the east is from the west” and never brings it back up again. Holding a grudge, keeping someone at arm's length, or quietly punishing them for the past isn't forgiveness; it's just saying the word without living it.

Praying for the People You'd Rather Avoid

He challenged the congregation to move beyond praying for family and close friends and start praying for the people they've been avoiding for years — the ones we duck down another store aisle to avoid running into. He suggested it's no accident when we keep crossing paths with someone we've fallen out with; God may be using that repeated encounter to nudge us toward making it right. In that light, prayer becomes an active form of love directed at exactly the people who are hardest to love.

Restoring the Broken

Drawing on the morning's Sunday school lesson about Jesus restoring Peter after his denial — asking him three times, “Do you love me?” before commissioning him to “feed my sheep” — Rev. Johnson explained that restoration goes further than forgiveness. It means actively welcoming someone back in, not just excusing what happened. He told of two men who broke down in tears after an altar call at a revival in Pleasantville, not out of conviction but because they'd overheard church members whispering that they were alcoholics who didn't belong. His point was direct: the church should be the place people run toward when they're falling apart, not the place that quietly pushes them back out the door.

Love Without an Expiration Date

He closed by returning to Jesus' new commandment and John 3:16, reminding the congregation that tomorrow isn't promised, so love and forgiveness can't be put off for a more convenient day. Loving the people who've hurt us, praying for them, and welcoming them back isn't optional for a Christian — Rev. Johnson said it's the whole point of the faith. He ended on a personal note, saying he's still learning to forgive and celebrate himself, so that whenever his own time comes, he can meet it with a clear heart and no unfinished business with anyone.

Key Takeaways

• Real love looks past appearances to the heart — the kind of love Jesus modeled, and the kind our parents tried to pass down to us.

• Genuine forgiveness lets go completely; “I forgive but I won't forget” isn't forgiveness at all — it falls short of God's model of removing sin “as far as the east is from the west.”

• Restoration goes beyond forgiveness — it means actively welcoming people back, not judging them at the door when they're already broken.

• Praying for the people who are hardest to love — the ones we avoid — is itself an act of obedience to Christ's new commandment.

• Tomorrow isn't promised, so love, forgiveness, and reconciliation can't wait for a more convenient time.

July 5, 2026 - The Church That Don't Believe

Scripture Reading — John 11:43–45 (KJV)

43  And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

44  And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

45  Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.

Sermon Summary

Two Days That Changed Everything

Jesus was nearing the end of His earthly ministry, only a few weeks from the cross, and He had spent this season training the disciples for what was coming. Word reached Him that His dear friend Lazarus was sick. Rather than rushing to Bethany, Jesus waited two more days, then told the disciples, “Lazarus sleepeth.” They took Him literally, assuming rest meant recovery. But Jesus meant Lazarus had already died, and He said it plainly so the disciples could see something deeper about who He really was. This wasn't carelessness. It was a lesson He needed them to learn before He could go any further with them.

More Than a Miracle Worker

The disciples had walked with Jesus long enough to see what He could do. They had watched Him heal the sick, calm a raging sea, walk on water, and heal a paralyzed man lowered through a rooftop. They believed He was the Son of God. But believing He could heal and believing He had power over death itself were two different things. Jesus wanted them, and wants us, to move past treating Him like someone we call only in an emergency, and to start recognizing Him as Lord over everything, including the things we've already given up as lost. It's easy to reduce Him to the blessing we say over a meal or the habit we repeat when we first wake up, without ever truly stopping to consider who is actually holding our life together.

He Heard the Prayer

Fifteen furlongs away, Jesus was already speaking with His disciples about Lazarus before anyone brought Him the news. That detail matters. It means Mary and Martha's prayer reached Him before word ever did. Whatever burden you carry to God, believe first that He heard it. Scripture says our prayers rise before Him like sweet incense. That should encourage anyone who has ever wondered whether their prayer made it past the ceiling. God delights in our conversation with Him, not only in our need.

He Is Coming

Mary and Martha didn't just grieve; they interceded, carrying their brother's need straight to Jesus. And even from far off, Jesus was already moving toward Bethany. No matter what you're facing, when your name and your need are lifted up to God, He is on His way. You may not see Him yet. You may not feel Him yet. But He is coming.

Nothing Is Too Hard for God

When doctors reach the end of what medicine can do, that isn't the end of the story — that's where God's part begins. Genesis 18:14 asks the question directly: is anything too hard for the Lord? Sarah laughed when she heard the promise of a child in her old age, yet God still kept His word. Whatever the “impossible” looks like in your life right now, it was already answered for someone else in scripture, and God has not changed. If He brought a people through slavery and through every hardship since, He is still able to bring you through whatever you're facing today.

Holding On Through the Storm

The hardest part of faith is often not the storm itself, but staying steady when the people around us, even people inside the church, discourage us or talk us out of believing. Faith has to be personal. It has to come from knowing scripture for yourself, not just hearing it secondhand. Rebuke the discouragement, but keep loving the people who bring it. Hold on to God's word even when you don't feel Him, even when you find yourself standing alone.

Still Standing

Looking back over every obstacle, every sleepless night, every trial that could have taken us under, we're still standing. That's reason enough to praise God in the middle of hardship, not only after it passes. The same Jesus who called Lazarus by name out of the grave knows your name, your storm, your struggle, and He can fix what nothing else can touch. Make the decision, like Joshua did, to serve the Lord whether or not anyone around you chooses to believe.

Key Takeaways

•       Jesus hears every prayer, even one spoken far away or in silence — believe He heard it before you focus on believing He'll answer it.

•       Believing Jesus can heal is good, but He is Lord over life and death itself, not just a helper for emergencies.

•       When your need is lifted to God, He is already on His way, even before you can see or feel Him moving.

•       Nothing is too hard for God — not sickness, not the impossible, not even death.

•       Stay rooted in God's word and hold on to Him even when others, including people in the church, discourage your faith.

Baker's AME Zion Church •  We Saved You a Seat.

June 28, 2026 - I Heard You the First Time

Scripture Reading — Daniel 10:7–17 (KJV)

7 And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.

8 Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.

9 Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground.

10 And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.

11 And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.

12 Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.

13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.

14 Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.

15 And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward the ground, and I became dumb.

16 And, behold, one like the similitude of the sons of men touched my lips: then I opened my mouth, and spake, and said unto him that stood before me, O my lord, by the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and I have retained no strength.

17 For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord? for as for me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither is there breath left in me.

Sermon Summary

A Vision That Drained His Strength

Evangelist Kinney began where Daniel began — on his knees. For twenty-one days Daniel had mourned and prayed, seeking understanding of a disturbing vision, when a glorious and terrifying figure appeared to him, described in gold and fire that mirrors the vision of Christ in Revelation chapter one. Daniel and Revelation, she reminded us, work hand in hand. The men with him never saw the vision, yet they felt the divine presence so strongly that they fled in terror, much like Paul’s companions on the Damascus road who heard a voice but saw no one. Daniel was left alone and drained of every ounce of his strength.

The Battle You Cannot See

While Daniel was fasting and praying, a spiritual battle was raging on his behalf. The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood God’s messenger for twenty-one days, holding back the answer Daniel had been waiting for. Why? Because, the evangelist explained, that worldly power wanted to keep its influence and block the revelation of God — and isn’t that exactly how the enemy still works today? People want to hold on to what they have, and the devil works hard to hinder our prayers. But we are never fighting alone. God dispatched Michael, one of the chief princes, a warrior angel, to come and help. We have a higher power fighting our battles.

I Heard You the First Time

Here is the heart of the message. The angel told Daniel, “Fear not… from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand… thy words were heard.” From the very first day. God heard him the first time, even though the answer took twenty-one more days to arrive. So often we lose heart because we feel God doesn’t hear us, or that He is taking too long, or that maybe He hasn’t answered because we aren’t good enough. But God says in Second Chronicles 7:14 that if His people will humble themselves and pray and seek His face, He will hear from heaven and heal their land. Sometimes the answer is yes, sometimes no, and sometimes wait a while — but He hears the first time.

Pray, and Don’t Faint

Because the answer can be delayed, we have to persevere anyhow. Jesus said in Luke 18 that men ought always to pray and not to faint. The Lord promised in Jeremiah 33:3, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things.” Sister Kinney urged the church to call on God when days are going well and not only when trouble comes. Prayer, she said, is the greatest power we have — it equips us for every challenge and bridges the gap between where we are and where God is taking us.

A Test on the Table

Then the evangelist testified to a battle of her own. At a follow-up appointment, after a mammogram, the technicians asked her to stay for an ultrasound. As they kept probing and a doctor was called in, fear rose up in her. So she began to pray right there on the table. She remembered Matthew 7:7 — ask, seek, knock — and Proverbs 3:5, to trust in the Lord with all her heart and lean not to her own understanding. She thought of the woman with the issue of blood who pressed her way through the crowd, and she pressed her own way through everything they were saying, putting her mind on Jesus. She claimed Second Timothy 1:7 — God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and a sound mind. And then she thought about Daniel, and heard the Lord say, “Audrey, I heard you the first time.” Strength and confidence came rushing back.

Whatever You’re Carrying, God Can Handle It

She turned the question to the congregation: what is holding you back this morning? Is it anxiety, unforgiveness, your children, financial trouble, problems in your marriage? Whatever it is, God can handle it. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, Second Corinthians 10 tells us, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations and bringing every thought into captivity. He is Jehovah-Rapha, the God who heals, and nothing is too hard for Him. Our real fight is not against flesh and blood — not the brother or sister who wronged us — but against spiritual wickedness in high places, so Ephesians 6 tells us to put on the whole armor of God and stand.

He’s Already Working It Out

So we lay aside every weight and run our race with patience, waiting on the Lord, who renews our strength so we mount up with wings as eagles. Our faith must accompany our request, for he that comes to God must believe that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. While we try to figure it out, God has already worked it out. Evangelist Kinney closed by trusting God for grieving and hurting families, for wayward children, for everyone carrying a heavy heart — and by calling the church to stand together, love one another, and hold each other up. We need one another. To God be the glory.

Key Takeaways

•     God hears the very first time we pray. A delayed answer is not a denied answer — from the first day Daniel set his heart, his words were heard.

•     There is a spiritual battle behind our waiting. The enemy works to hinder our prayers, but God sends help — like Michael — to fight for us.

•     Keep praying and do not faint. We are to call on God in the good days and the hard ones, because prayer is the greatest power we have.

•     When fear rises, press through it with the Word. Trusting God and remembering His promises turns fear into strength and confidence.

•     Whatever you carry, God can handle it. He is Jehovah-Rapha, nothing is too hard for Him, and He is already working it out for you.

June 14, 2026 - I Never Would

Scripture Reading — Genesis 50:15–20 (KJV)

15  And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.

16  And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying,

17  So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.

18  And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.

19  And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?

20  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

Sermon Summary

Finish the Journey Well

Rev. Johnson opened with gratitude—for those gathered in the sanctuary and for everyone joining on Zoom from across the world—and with a reminder that it is a gift to be in God's house one more time. None of us knows which Sunday will be our last, so the words we so easily repeat carry real weight.

The goal of this journey, he said, is to finish it properly. People like to say it is not how you start but how you end, and that is true. God is not preoccupied with what we did twenty years ago; He is far more concerned with what we plan to do going forward, and whether our plan is to spend the rest of our lives with Him.

We All Have the Same Testimony

If we are honest, every one of us has come through some storms—and some of them were horrific. Yet here we stand. That alone, the pastor said, is reason enough to shout. The next storm is coming, but the memory of what God has already brought us through is meant to be our encouragement when it arrives.

He pointed to David, who faced Goliath with a testimony his own brothers didn't even know about. When a bear and a lion came after his flock, God gave him the strength to overcome them. David understood that he survived only because God was at his side. We like to credit our own strength—good reflexes, quick feet—but if we keep living, we come to see the truth: it is only because of God that we are still standing.

The Problem in the House: Unforgiveness

The message turned to a problem the pastor said lives in every church, including this one: unforgiveness. We carry the impulse for revenge from childhood—"I've got to get my lick back"—and children who think this way usually learned it at home. The remedy is the same one Joshua chose: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

It makes no sense, he warned, to attend church every Sunday, come to Bible study and Sunday school, and still miss heaven because we refuse to let go. We will be kind to a boss who insults us because we need the paycheck, yet hold a grudge against family. Scripture tells us not to let the sun go down on our anger; we can lie down to sleep and never wake, and we should not carry that sin to bed with us. We cannot pick and choose how we obey God.

Joseph's Long Road

Joseph had every reason to be bitter. His brothers were jealous of the favored son with the special coat, called him "the dreamer," and plotted against him—first to kill him, then to sell him into slavery. In Potiphar's house he did the right thing and still ended up falsely accused and imprisoned. A fellow prisoner promised to remember him, then forgot for two more years.

From age seventeen onward, Joseph spent some thirteen years moving from the pit to slavery to prison. Through it all he kept his routine of prayer and kept calling on God, trusting that God would answer by and by.

True Praise Is Born in the Valley

Anyone can praise God after winning the lottery, the pastor said. The real question is whether you can praise Him in the valley—when the job is gone, when your spouse looks at you like a stranger, when your children act as though they've lost their minds, when your pockets are empty. That is where true praise is born.

He believed Joseph praised God in the pit, in slavery, in prison, and right through the years he was forgotten—refusing to throw in the towel over a few things that didn't go his way. And everywhere Joseph went, he found favor. Favor doesn't only mean God opens doors in a crisis; it means that even in the storm, God lets you know, "I still have My eye on you."

Forgiveness—"God Meant It for Good"

When the brothers, afraid for their lives, came begging forgiveness, Joseph had already forgiven them—back in the pit, in slavery, in prison, even with his father in the grave. God may make our enemies our footstool, the pastor noted, but that doesn't mean we put our foot on their neck. Instead we model how we ourselves would want to be treated.

This is the heart of verse 20: "Ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good." Joseph could look back and say his brothers meant it for his harm, but God meant it for good—lifting him from slave and prisoner to second-in-command. He closed with Job, who lost everything yet never cursed God, not realizing God was using his suffering to elevate him. If you find yourself in the valley today, that is a sign God still has a plan for you. Hold on and faint not, and your testimony will be Joseph's: I never would have made it—if it had not been for our God.

Key Takeaways

•     If you have made it through the storms of life, it is only because God was at your side—"I never would have made it" should be every believer's testimony.

•     Finish the journey well. God cares less about your past than about whether your plan is to spend the rest of your life with Him.

•     Unforgiveness can keep a faithful churchgoer out of heaven. Don't let the sun go down on your anger—let go, and let God.

•     True praise is born in the valley. Praising God when everything falls apart is the praise that means the most.

•     What others mean for evil, God can mean for good. Like Joseph, choose grace over revenge and trust God's plan in the waiting.

Baker's Chapel  •  All are welcome.

June 8, 2026 - Being in the Church Is Not Enough

Scripture Reading — Numbers 14:1–11 (KJV)

1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!

3 And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.

6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes:

7 And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.

8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.

9 Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.

10 And all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.

11 And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?

Sermon Summary

In a direct and searching message from Numbers 14, Rev. Jeffery Johnson challenged the congregation with a truth many people quietly resist: simply showing up to church is not enough. Drawing on the story of the Israelites at the edge of the Promised Land — and on God's own words of frustration in verse 11 — the sermon calls every believer to examine whether their faith runs deeper than attendance.

A Dangerous Myth

There is a myth alive in the church today: as long as I'm in the building, I've done my part. But the sermon opens by asking a sobering question — why does scripture say that judgment begins at the house of God? Because God will first separate those who are present in body from those who are present in spirit. Attendance is a starting point, not a finish line.

A People Who Refused to Go In

Rev. Johnson took the congregation back to the wilderness. After 400 years of bondage, God heard the cries of His people and sent them a deliverer. He split the Red Sea, annihilated Pharaoh's army, fed the people daily with manna, kept their clothes from wearing out, and led them all the way to the edge of Canaan. Twelve spies were sent in — ten came back with fear, two came back with faith. Every single one agreed the land was rich and blessed. But the majority refused to go in and instead called for a new leader to take them back to Egypt. Rev. Johnson didn't let that pass lightly: Egypt had been devastated. The firstborn of an entire kingdom was dead. The whole army was at the bottom of the Red Sea. There was nothing to go back to. And yet, in their fear and unbelief, that is exactly what the people chose. The parallel to believers today was unmistakable: everyone agrees heaven is a good place. Not everyone is willing to do what it takes to get there.

Being Saved Comes with Responsibility

One reason people resist a deeper commitment is that they don't want the work. Jesus didn't train His disciples just to gather them in a room — He trained them so they could go back out into the highways and byways and compare men and women to the kingdom. He even prepared them for rejection: shake the dust off your feet and keep going. Don't take it personally — they're not rejecting you, they're rejecting Me. But the work still has to be done. Somebody has to go tell a sin-sick world that there is another way out.

God Knows What's on Your Heart

Of the approximately 600,000 men who left Egypt — all of them part of God's chosen people, all of them present for the miracles — only four had the opportunity to enter the Promised Land: Moses, Aaron, Caleb, and Joshua. Aaron died before reaching it. Moses saw it from a distance but could not cross over. Only Caleb and Joshua walked in. Rev. Johnson brought that number home: you can attend church, talk about church, love the church all you want — but God is reading the contents of your heart. Even a dog can sense who is kind and who is not. If an animal is that discerning, how much more does an all-knowing God see what we carry inside us? You can talk a good game, but God will not be fooled by lip service.

Judged by Your Works

The Book of Revelation says the books will be opened and every person will be judged by their works. That is a sobering reality. God takes you just as you are — broken, flawed, imperfect — and like a potter, He can remold you into something He can use. But you have to be willing to be shaped. You have to be willing to go somewhere you've never been before, to admit you haven't always gotten it right, to let people see how far you are willing to go for God. Peter claimed he would die for Jesus — and then denied Him three times before the rooster crowed. Saying the right words is not enough. God wants our whole selves.

Praising Him from the Valley

The sermon closed with a personal and powerful testimony. Rev. Johnson declared that the devil knows exactly whose side you're on — not by what you say on Sunday morning, but by whether you can still praise God in the valley. When the storms come. When people talk about you. When doors close. When the doctor has no more answers. That is where real faith is revealed. The praise the world didn't give you is the praise the world can't take away. "Being in the church is not enough," he concluded. "I want the devil to know whose side I'm on."

Key Takeaways

•  Attendance is a starting point, not a destination. God wants more than your presence — He wants your heart.

•  Everyone agrees heaven is good, but not everyone is willing to change. Entering God's promises requires surrender and obedience.

•  Being saved comes with work. Christians are called to go into the highways and byways and share the good news.

•  God knows what is in your heart. Lip service and long attendance records do not fool Him.

•  Learn to praise God from the valley. The faith that holds in hard times is the faith the devil cannot shake.

May 31, 2026 - “You Don’t Have to Bow”

Scripture Reading — Esther 3:1–6 (KJV)

1 After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him.

2 And all the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.

3 Then the king’s servants, which were in the king’s gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king’s commandment?

4 And it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s matters would stand: for he had told them that he was a Jew.

5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.

6 And he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had shewed him the people of Mordecai: wherefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai.

Sermon Summary

In this powerful message drawn from Esther 3:1–6, the speaker centers on one defining act of faith: Mordecai’s refusal to bow before Haman, the king’s powerful prime minister. That single act of defiance becomes a window into the deeper truth that God’s people are never required to bow to the pride and pressure of mere mortals.

The World’s Pressure to Bow

The message opens with a frank look at how the earthly realm demands flattery and submission. In the workplace this impulse is called “brown-nosing” — buying gifts for the boss, excessive flattery, and agreeing with those in authority even when they are wrong. Haman embodied this spirit in reverse: he was not content to receive honor; he demanded it. Immensely wealthy and appointed prime minister by King Xerxes, he declared that none of his prosperity gave him satisfaction “as long as I see Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate.” His spirit was wounded the moment someone refused to flatter him — a warning to anyone today who withholds friendship from those who will not bow.

Mordecai Stands Firm

Mordecai’s refusal was not stubbornness — it was obedience. “Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not bow down to them, nor serve them.” God’s own commandment forbade His people to bow down to mortal men. The preacher reminded the congregation that if man is truly in control, then where is God? When David gazed at the vastness of the universe and asked, “What is man, that thou art mindful of him?” (Psalm 8:4), he was placing human power in its proper, humble perspective beside the Creator.

Haman’s Plot and the Danger It Brings

Haman’s wounded pride escalated into genocidal hatred. Fueled by generations of enmity between the Jews and his ancestors the Amalekites, he bribed King Xerxes with 10,000 talents of silver to authorize the extermination of every Jewish person in the kingdom. When Mordecai learned of the conspiracy, he tore his clothes and clothed himself in sackcloth and ashes — an outward sign of deep humiliation and grief. The question the preacher raised was direct: “When do we get humiliated about the injustice done to us in this world?”

Esther’s Courage and the Power of Prayer

Mordecai urged Queen Esther not to assume that her palace position made her safe, and reminded her: “Who knows whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther responded with faith rather than fear. She called a three-day fast — for all the people and even the animals — and then risked her life by approaching the king uninvited, declaring, “If I perish, I perish.” Prayer went before her, softening the king’s heart so that he extended the golden scepter, granting her an audience. The preacher drew a vivid picture of Esther’s fervent prayer, reminding the church: “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” — and that some things come only by fasting and prayer.

God Working Behind the Scenes

One sleepless night, King Xerxes called for the royal chronicles to be read to him. He discovered that Mordecai had once saved his life and had never been rewarded. When the king asked Haman what honor should be shown to such a man — Haman, assuming the king meant himself, suggested a royal parade through the city streets. The very honor Haman designed for himself was given to Mordecai. The preacher highlighted this turn of events as a picture of God’s behind-the-scenes work: “Though the pressures of life seem to weigh you down and you don’t know what to do, God is concerned and He’s working it out.”

The Trap You Set Just Might Be for You

On the second night of a banquet Esther hosted for the king and Haman, she revealed Haman’s plot against her people. The king ordered Haman to be hanged on the very gallows Haman had built for Mordecai. His ten sons were hanged as well, to eliminate any future threat of retaliation. The message was unmistakable: karma is real, and actions have consequences when God is in charge. “Fret not thyself because of evildoers… for they shall soon be cut down like the green herb” (Psalm 37:1–2).

A Call to Prayer, Humility, and Witness

The sermon closed with both a challenge and an invitation. God’s promise stands: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). But there is work to do. The preacher called the church to stop calling people who cannot help and start casting every care upon the Lord (1 Peter 5:7). He celebrated the resurrection — “He died, but He got up on that third day Sunday morning” — and closed with the Great Commission: go and tell somebody. Tell them He is a rock in a weary land, a shelter in the time of storm, a bridge over troubled waters, the Lion of Judah, the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.

Key Takeaways

•  You are never required to bow to the pride or pressure of people. God alone deserves our ultimate allegiance.

•  Knowing the Lord and knowing His requirements gives you the courage to stand — like Mordecai — even when standing is costly.

•  Prayer and fasting break down barriers and soften hearts. Some things come only that way.

•  God works behind the scenes on behalf of His people — be still and trust Him.

•  The traps we set for others may become our own. Leave vengeance to God and fret not (Psalm 37).

May 24, 2026 - “An Uncommitted Missionary”

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:7-11 (KJV)

⁷ I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:

⁸ Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

⁹ Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me:

¹⁰ For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

¹¹ Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry.

An Uncommitted Missionary

Paul writes these words from a prison cell, facing execution, and the loneliness in his voice is hard to miss. He has fought the fight. He has finished the course. He has kept the faith. But in the same breath, he names a man whose story took a very different turn — Demas.

Demas was no stranger to ministry. He was a fellow laborer with Paul, an associate of Luke, a trusted name in the work of the gospel. He had a promising start. But somewhere along the way, something shifted. Paul tells us plainly what happened: Demas "loved this present world." He didn't fall because the work was too hard. He didn't stumble over doctrine. He simply set his affection on the wrong things and drifted toward Thessalonica — a wealthy, cosmopolitan city full of everything the world had to offer.

Have you ever been deserted? Paul had. And his question hangs in the air for all of us this morning: what happened to Demas? What turned a faithful friend into a missing man at the very moment he was needed most?

The answer is the same answer Scripture gives us again and again. Friendship with the world is enmity with God (James 4:4). Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world (1 John 2:15). Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2). Demas didn't lose a theological argument — he lost his first love. His motivation was misplaced. He served out of duty instead of devotion, and when the going got hard, duty wasn't enough to hold him.

That's a sobering word for any of us who have raised our hand to follow Christ. It's possible to start well and finish poorly. It's possible to look the part, to sit in the right pews, to labor alongside the right people, and still walk away when the world calls loud enough. Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.

So the question turns to us: how can we desert such a great salvation? How can we walk away from the One who has been a bridge over troubled water, a rock in a weary land, a shelter in the time of storm? How can we turn our backs on the One who woke us up this morning, put food on our table, made a way out of no way? The God who is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent — taking care of your family in one place and mine in another at the very same time — how could we possibly trade Him for anything this world has to offer?

The race is not given to the swift, nor to the strong, but to those who endure to the end. Don't give up. Keep on keeping on. Look to the hills from whence cometh our help — all of our help comes from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. May it never be said of us, as it was said of Demas, that we loved this present world more than the One who gave His life for us.

To God be the glory.

May 17, 2026 - “Second and Last Place Are the Same

Acts 26:1-18, 28-29 (KJV)

¹ Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself:

² I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day before thee touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews:

³ Especially because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently.

⁴ My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews;

⁵ Which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

⁶ And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers:

⁷ Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For which hope’s sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.

⁸ Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?

⁹ I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

¹⁰ Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them.

¹¹ And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities.

¹² Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,

¹³ At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.

¹⁴ And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

¹⁵ And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.

¹⁶ But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

¹⁷ Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,

¹⁸ To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

²⁸ Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

²⁹ And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether, such as I am, except these bonds.

The whole world loves a close call. Olympic medalists who came within a hundredth of a second. Buzzer-beaters that nearly went in. The lottery ticket that was off by one number. In nearly every arena of life, almost earns admiration. We say things like, “Hey, at least you tried.” We hand out medals for second place. We post the runner-up’s picture too.

But there is one room in all of existence where almost earns nothing at all.

Look at King Agrippa.

He sits on a throne. Paul stands before him in chains. The apostle has just preached one of the most powerful sermons ever recorded — his own testimony, beginning to end. Paul tells the king about his old life as a Pharisee, his persecution of the church, his collision with the risen Christ on the Damascus road, and the calling that turned him from prisoner-maker to prisoner. And when Paul finishes, the king — moved, stirred, intellectually convinced — leans forward and says:

“Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.”

Almost.

Beloved, do you hear that word? It is one of the saddest words in all of Scripture. Because in the courtroom of heaven, almost doesn’t count. Agrippa walked away that day not as a saint, but as a sinner who was nearly saved. And nearly saved is still lost.

This is why Paul’s reply hits with such force: “I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether, such as I am, except these bonds.” Paul is saying — King, I don’t want you almost. I want you altogether. I want you all the way in.

Here is the hard truth: when it comes to salvation, second place and last place are the same place. Both are outside the kingdom. Both are on the wrong side of the door. The man who refuses Christ outright and the man who comes within an inch of stepping through — they end up in the same room.

How many of us are walking around as almost Christians?

Almost surrendered.

Almost forgiving.

Almost obedient.

Almost honest.

Almost generous.

Almost free.

Almost present in worship.

We applaud ourselves for how close we are getting. But God is not impressed with proximity. He calls us to passage. He doesn’t want you near the cross — He wants you under it. He doesn’t want you near the throne — He wants you bowed before it. He doesn’t want you near the church — He wants you in it.

What is your almost today? What is the one thing you keep walking up to and never walking through? You know what it is. The Holy Spirit knows what it is. And He is not letting that conviction die down in your chest by accident.

Don’t be a King Agrippa — the man who heard the gospel up close and walked away applauding the speaker. Be a Paul — bound in chains and still free in Christ. Altogether. All the way.

Because in the kingdom of God, there are no podium finishes. No participation trophies. No silver medals.

Second place and last place are the same place.

So today — come altogether. Come the rest of the way.

We’ve saved you a seat.

May 10, 2026 - A Mothers Heart

A Mother's Heart

Mark 7:24-30

²⁴ And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid.

²⁵ For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:

²⁶ The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

²⁷ But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

²⁸ And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.

²⁹ And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

³⁰ And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.

Reflection

Jesus had crossed the border into Tyre and Sidon, looking for a quiet place to rest. He didn't want to be found. But a mother found Him anyway — because that's what mothers do.

She had every reason to stay home. She was a Gentile, a Greek, a Syrophoenician — an outsider to the covenant community. She had no claim on this Jewish rabbi, no standing to make demands, no relationship to leverage. What she had was a sick child, and that was enough. A mother's heart doesn't measure the cost before it acts. It simply moves toward the one who can help.

When she fell at His feet, she wasn't there for herself. She didn't ask for healing, recognition, or relief from her own burdens. She came on behalf of someone who couldn't come for herself. That is the shape of a mother's heart — it intercedes. It stands in the gap. It carries to Jesus the names of children who are too young, too sick, too far gone, or too lost to carry themselves.

Then comes the moment that has troubled readers for centuries. Jesus says, "Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs." On the surface, it sounds like a refusal. But this mother heard something deeper. She heard an invitation hidden inside a test.

The Verses That Changed Everything

"Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs."

"For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter."

What faith. What boldness. What holy wit. She didn't argue with Jesus — she agreed with Him and pressed in further. Yes, Lord. She accepted her place. But she also knew something about the table of God: even the crumbs are enough.A scrap from the Master's table can heal what nothing else can touch. A leftover blessing from Jesus is greater than the full feast of this world.

This is the theology of a mother's heart. She doesn't need the whole loaf. She'll take a crumb, because she knows whose table it fell from.

And Jesus — who had seemed to push her away — pulls her in. "For this saying go thy way." Notice He doesn't say "for your tears" or "for your persistence." He says for this saying — for this faith spoken out loud. Her words moved heaven. Before she got home, the deliverance was already done. The miracle traveled faster than the mother.

What This Means for Us

Somewhere right now, there is a mother praying for a child she cannot fix. A grandmother standing in for parents who have walked away. A spiritual mother carrying names before God that no one else remembers. To every one of them, this passage says: keep coming. Keep falling at His feet. Keep speaking faith even when the answer seems delayed. The Lord is never as far away as silence makes Him feel.

Your child may be in another room, another city, another world entirely from where you can reach. But your prayers can cross any border Jesus has already crossed — and He has crossed them all.

A mother's heart, joined to the heart of Christ, is one of the most powerful forces on earth.

"Yes, Lord."

That's all it takes.

May 3, 2026 - What If It Were You

Scripture: 1 Samuel 17:8–11 (KJV)

⁸ And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

⁹ If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us.

¹⁰ And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.

¹¹ When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

Summary

The scene opens in the Valley of Elah. Two armies face each other across the ravine — Israel on one ridge, the Philistines on the other. From the enemy ranks steps a giant of a man, Goliath of Gath, nearly ten feet tall and armored head to heel. Day after day, for forty days, he comes out and bellows the same challenge: send me one man. Settle it in single combat. Loser's people serve the winner's. And every time the words ring across the valley, the response from Israel is the same — silence, paralysis, fear. Saul, the king who stands head and shoulders above the rest, is dismayed. The whole army of the living God is greatly afraid.

What If It Were You?

It is easy, three thousand years removed, to read this story and shake our heads at Israel's cowardice. Where was their faith? Where was their courage? Why didn't someone — anyone — step forward? We read it knowing how it ends. We know about the shepherd boy with the sling. We know the giant falls. So we judge the trembling soldiers from the comfortable distance of hindsight.

But pause there. What if it were you?

What if you were standing on that ridge, sword in hand, watching nine and a half feet of armored death pace the valley floor? What if it were your turn in line, your name being called, your family waiting at home for word of whether you had survived the day? Would you have stepped forward? Would your faith have held? Or would you, like Saul and all Israel, have been dismayed and greatly afraid?

The honesty of verse 11 is one of the gifts of Scripture. The Bible does not airbrush its heroes. It tells us plainly that the king and the army of the Lord — the covenant people, inheritors of the promises, the ones who had seen God split the Red Sea and bring down the walls of Jericho — froze. Their fear was not a footnote. It was the headline. They were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

And before we are too quick to distance ourselves from them, we should ask what giants stand on the ridge of our own valley. The diagnosis we are afraid to hear. The bill we cannot pay. The marriage that is unraveling. The child who has walked away from the Lord. The temptation we have battled for years and feel sure will finally swallow us. The future that looms larger than our faith.

We have all stood, at one time or another, where Israel stood — hearing the taunt, counting the cost, and finding our courage failing. The question is not whether giants come. The question is what we do when they do.

The story of 1 Samuel 17 does not end in verse 11. The fear of Israel is not the final word. A boy is coming from the sheepfold who does not measure the giant against himself, but against the living God. But that is for another day. For now, sit with verse 11. Sit with the fear. Be honest about it. The God who would deliver Israel is the same God who meets us in our dismay — not when we have conquered our fear, but right in the middle of it.

What if it were you? It is. And the same God stands ready.

April 26, 2026 - Pleasing the Crowd Despite the Cost

Matthew 27:15-26 (KJV)

¹⁵ Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.

¹⁶ And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas.

¹⁷ Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, "Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?"

¹⁸ For he knew that for envy they had delivered him.

¹⁹ When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, "Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him."

²⁰ But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.

²¹ The governor answered and said unto them, "Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you?" They said, "Barabbas."

²² Pilate saith unto them, "What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?" They all say unto him, "Let him be crucified."

²³ And the governor said, "Why, what evil hath he done?" But they cried out the more, saying, "Let him be crucified."

²⁴ When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it."

²⁵ Then answered all the people, and said, "His blood be on us, and on our children."

²⁶ Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

In Matthew 27:15-26, Pontius Pilate stands at one of history's most defining crossroads. He holds the fate of Jesus in his hands and knows the truth — Scripture tells us plainly that he recognized Jesus had been handed over out of envy, not justice. His own wife pleads with him to have nothing to do with condemning "that just man." Every internal alarm is going off. And yet, when Pilate looks out at the angry crowd shouting "Let him be crucified," his convictions buckle under the weight of their voices.

So he reaches for a basin of water. He washes his hands in front of the multitude and declares himself innocent — as if rinsing his palms could rinse his conscience. But no amount of water can wash away a decision made to please people instead of honor truth. Pilate chose the crowd's approval over a clear conscience, political comfort over moral courage, and in doing so condemned an innocent man to die.

The tragedy of Pilate isn't that he didn't know better. It's that he did — and chose the crowd anyway. His story is a sobering mirror for every believer who has ever felt the pressure to stay silent, soften the truth, or go along with what's popular just to keep the peace. Pleasing the crowd always comes at a cost. The only question is who pays it.

April 19, 2026 - On the Back Side of the Desert

On the Back Side of the Desert

The Sufficiency of God

Introduction

Every servant of God eventually finds himself on "the backside of the desert." It's the place of waiting, of silence, where yesterday's dreams feel distant and tomorrow's promises feel delayed.

Moses knew it well. Once a prince in Pharaoh's palace, he had tried to deliver his people in his own strength — and failed. Forty years later, at eighty years old, he was tending another man's sheep in the wilderness. His platform had shrunk to a flock on the back side of nowhere.

But that is exactly where God showed up. Because the back side of the desert isn't where God abandons us — it's where He prepares us to discover that He is enough.

The Text

Exodus 3:1-10 (KJV)

¹ Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

² And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

³ And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.

⁴ And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.

⁵ And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

⁶ Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

⁷ And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

⁸ And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good and a large land...

⁹ Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.

¹⁰ Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my children of Israel out of Egypt.

The Sufficiency of God

Look carefully at what God says in these two verses.

"The cry is come unto me." God doesn't ask Moses to point out the problem — He has already seen it, already heard it, already come down. The deliverance was settled in heaven before it was ever announced in the wilderness. That is the sufficiency of God. He is never reacting, never scrambling, never waiting on us to notice.

"I will send thee." He doesn't tell Moses to devise a plan or deliver Israel in his own strength. He says, "I will send."The sending is His. The sufficiency is His. Moses isn't the deliverer — he's the vessel.

This is the pattern for every servant on the back side of the desert:

• God sees what we cannot fix.

• God hears what we cannot answer.

• God sends us — not in our sufficiency, but in His.

Moses would protest his inadequacy again and again. To every objection, God gave the same answer: "Certainly I will be with thee." The sufficiency was never in Moses. It was always in the God who sent him.

Conclusion

Maybe you're on your own back side of the desert right now — dreams feeling dead, years feeling wasted, the call of God feeling far away. Take heart. The same God who met Moses in a burning bush still meets His servants in the wilderness.

He has already seen. He has already heard. He has already come down. And when He sends you, He will not send you alone — because the sufficiency is not in you. It is in Him.

April 12, 2026 - No Way Out

The Rich Man and Lazarus: A Story That Still Speaks Today

Scripture Reading: Luke 16:19–31

Watch the Message

The Passage (Luke 16:19–31, World English Bible)

19 "Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury every day.

20 A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, full of sores,

21 and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. Yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores.

22 The beggar died, and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried.

23 In Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus at his bosom.

24 He cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue! For I am in anguish in this flame.'

25 "But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that you, in your lifetime, received your good things, and Lazarus, in the same way, bad things. But now here he is comforted and you are in anguish.

26 Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that none may cross over from there to us.'

27 "He said, 'I ask you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house;

28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, so that they won't also come into this place of torment.'

29 "But Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'

30 "He said, 'No, father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.'

31 "He said to him, 'If they don't listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead.'"

A Brief Reflection

In this striking parable, Jesus contrasts the earthly lives and eternal destinies of two very different men. One is nameless, wrapped in purple and fine linen, feasting each day behind the safety of his gate. The other is Lazarus — named, known by God — who sits hungry and hurting just steps from the rich man's table, ignored.

When death comes, as it does to both, their positions are reversed. Lazarus is carried by angels to Abraham's side. The rich man awakens in torment, pleading for even a drop of water. The story's most sobering detail is not the flame but the fixed gulf — the reminder that what we do with this life matters beyond this life.

Then the parable turns. The rich man begs for a messenger to be sent back to warn his brothers. Abraham's answer cuts to the heart of the matter: "If they don't listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead." God has already spoken. The question is whether we will listen.

Three invitations from this passage:

• See the Lazarus at your gate. Who has God placed within reach of your compassion this week — a neighbor, a coworker, a stranger?

• Hold your blessings loosely. Wealth, comfort, and status are not condemned here, but indifference is. How are we using what we've been given?

• Listen to the Word you already have. The rich man wanted a miracle; Abraham pointed him back to Scripture. The Bible in our hands is a greater gift than we often realize.

May we have ears to hear, eyes to see the Lazarus beside us, and hearts ready to live today in the light of eternity.

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain.

Join us this Sunday as we continue walking through the teachings of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke.

Pastor Appreciation March 29, 2026

Honoring the Shepherds Among Us

A Pastor Appreciation Reflection

Each year, we pause to recognize and celebrate the men and women who faithfully lead, teach, and care for our spiritual communities. Pastor Appreciation Day is more than a date on the calendar—it is an intentional moment to reflect on the calling, sacrifice, and impact of pastoral leadership.

The Weight of the Calling

Pastors carry a unique responsibility. They are called to:

• Proclaim truth with clarity and conviction

• Shepherd individuals and families through life’s highest and lowest moments

• Provide counsel, often in times of crisis

• Lead with integrity, humility, and perseverance

Behind every sermon is prayer, study, and personal investment. Behind every act of care is a heart committed to serving others, often quietly and without recognition.

The Value of Encouragement

Scripture consistently reminds us of the importance of honoring those who lead well. Encouragement is not optional—it is essential.

Simple acts can have a lasting impact:

• A handwritten note expressing gratitude

• A conversation sharing how their leadership has made a difference

• Prayer—intentional and consistent—for their strength and wisdom

These gestures reinforce that their labor is seen, valued, and meaningful.

The Human Side of Leadership

Pastors are not immune to fatigue, discouragement, or personal challenges. While they lead others, they also need support themselves.

A healthy church culture acknowledges this by:

• Extending grace

• Offering support to their families

• Creating space for rest and renewal

Recognition should not be limited to a single day but embedded into the rhythm of church life.

A Collective Responsibility

Appreciation is not the responsibility of a few—it belongs to the entire community. A thriving church is one where leadership is both respected and supported.

This season is an opportunity to ask:

• How can we better support our pastors throughout the year?

• What systems or habits can we establish to sustain encouragement long-term?

Closing Reflection

Pastors invest deeply in the spiritual growth and well-being of others. Taking time to honor that investment strengthens not only them but the entire body they serve.

Let this be more than a moment—let it shape a culture of ongoing appreciation, respect, and partnership in the work of ministry.