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John 12:1-8 — Mary poured a year's wages on Jesus' feet, and the disciples called it waste. Jesus said, "Let her alone." Here's why. This expository preaching message through John 12:1-8 takes you to the supper in Bethany, six days before the Passover, where Mary of Bethany anointed Jesus with a pound of spikenard. Worth about 300 pence, a year's wages, it was poured out while Judas called it waste. If you've ever been criticized for giving too much to the Lord, or wondered what it means to pour out your best on Jesus, this message is for you. Everyone at that table was under orders to turn Jesus in. Lazarus, four days in the grave, was passing the bread. Mary said nothing, and Jesus spoke for her. Judas, the thief with the bag, walked out smelling like Mary's worship and went to the chief priests. Pastor Fortunato connects the supper to Matthew 26, Mark 14, 1 Corinthians 11, Ecclesiastes 7, John 19, Luke 23–24, Deuteronomy 15 and 2 Corinthians 8. This sermon on Mary anointing Jesus explains: - Why every man at the feast was under orders to turn Jesus in (John 11:56-57) - Why Lazarus, raised from the dead, sat at the table and ate - What a pound of spikenard cost, and why it equals a year of wages - How John's "feet" and Matthew's "head" are both true, and Jesus' own word "body" (Matthew 26:12) - Why Mary's hair is her glory and her covering (1 Corinthians 11:15) - How Judas the thief, introduced in John 10, shows up at the table with a bag and a price - Why Mary was anointing Jesus "against the day of my burying," and why the women came to the tomb with spices - How "the poor always ye have with you" echoes Deuteronomy 15 and 2 Corinthians 8

Daniel 1:8 — Should Christians celebrate Halloween? Is church trunk-or-treat harmless? A Bible answer for parents from Daniel 1. This expository preaching message from Daniel 1 answers the question every Christian parent faces each October: should Christians celebrate Halloween? Pastor Fortunato doesn't hand you a list of rules. He walks you through what Babylon did to Daniel (took his home, his schooling, his food, and his name) and shows why "it's just candy" misses the point. The trouble was never the candy. The trouble is the table. If you've been asking whether a church trunk-or-treat is any different, whether it matters where Halloween started, or how to say no without being unkind or raising a legalist, this message was preached for you. It is a family integrated church sermon, so children and parents were in the room together. Daniel purposed in his heart before the table was ever set, and this message shows how to help your children do the same. This verse-by-verse KJV sermon walks through Daniel 1, 2 Kings 18, and 1 Corinthians 10, explaining: - Why Babylon always starts with the young, and wants the best of them - Why Babylon took the holy vessels and what that says about trunk-or-treat - Why it doesn't matter where a thing started, only what is burning in front of it (Hezekiah and Nehushtan) - Why Babylon gives new names, and what children say when they answer the door in costume - What "the idol is nothing" actually means in 1 Corinthians 10, and why the table is still the table - How Daniel said no with kindness, courtesy, and care for the man in charge, without legalism - How to train children to pass up the king's table

3 John 7-8 — Not every Christian is called to the mission field. But if you stay, you owe the ones who go. What the Bible says about supporting missionaries. This expository preaching message through 3 John 7-8 is for the Christian who will never board a plane for the mission field. Most of us will be right here next Thursday. John wrote these two verses for us. Some men went forth for His name's sake, taking nothing of the Gentiles. Someone still had to buy the bread. John says, "We therefore ought." This is a sermon on supporting missionaries, and on what God says the ones who stay owe to the ones who go. If you've ever said, "I just give when I feel led," this message will press on that. Nobody waits to feel led when the light bill comes in. The Bible uses the word "ought," and ought means owe. Calvary paid your sin debt in full. It also put you in debt to a lost world that needs the gospel. Supporting missionaries is how a church that stays home pays that debt. Pastor Fortunato traces "for his name's sake" from 1 John 2:12 to 3 John 7. The name that forgave you is the reason men go out. He shows why John calls givers "fellowhelpers," not helpers: a helper works for you, and a fellow helper works with you. Then come the unnamed disciples who lowered Paul over the Damascus wall in a basket. If they had let go, there would be no Romans and no Galatians. The sermon closes at the brook Besor in 1 Samuel 30, where David made it a law in Israel that the man who stays by the stuff shares alike with the man who goes to battle. This verse-by-verse sermon walks through 3 John 7-8, explaining: - Why these verses are written to the Christians who stay, not the ones who go

John 11:45-57 — The Pharisees watched Lazarus walk out of the grave and plotted to kill Jesus. You can believe the miracles and still be lost. This expository preaching message through John 11:45-57 follows the chief priests and Pharisees into the council room after Lazarus is raised. They admit "this man doeth many miracles," and then plot to kill Jesus anyway. We walk through the plot to kill Jesus, the Caiaphas prophecy ("one man should die for the people"), and what it means to believe on the Miracle Worker, not just in the miracles. Every person in a room like this asks one of two questions: the council's question ("What do we do with Jesus?") or the Philippian jailer's ("What must I do to be saved?"). If you've believed in the miracles for years but have never trusted Christ Himself, this message was preached for you. Caiaphas meant his words for politics, but God meant them for pardon, and the sermon shows how God turned the worst thing men ever did into the best gift heaven ever gave. This expository sermon walks through John 11:45-57, 2 Corinthians 2, Isaiah 45, Luke 16, John 12, and Hebrews 2, explaining: - Why some at Bethany believed and others ran to the Pharisees (John 11:45-46; 2 Corinthians 2:15-16) - Why the council believed in the miracles but would not believe on the Miracle Worker (v47) - The council's question versus the Philippian jailer's question - Why clay that fights the potter never wins (Isaiah 45:9) - Why the leaders tried to kill Lazarus after he was raised (John 12:10; Luke 16) - What Caiaphas meant by "expedient," and what God meant by it (v49-52) - How a wicked high priest prophesied the gospel without knowing it - Why Jesus withdrew

Genesis 2:15 — Is work a curse? No. A biblical work ethic starts in the garden, before sin, and it's how God usually provides for us. This family integrated church Sunday school lesson answers the question "what does the Bible say about work?" Last week we learned it all belongs to God. This week we learn how God usually puts it in our hands: He gives us work. The lesson shows from Scripture that work was God's idea before sin, that the ground was cursed and not the work, and that a biblical work ethic protects us, provides for our families, and gives us something to share. If you've ever thought of work as a punishment from the fall, this lesson will change that. It speaks to fathers and mothers, to young people working through chores and schoolwork, and to anyone wondering why a full day of honest work is a blessing. Children participate throughout, reading Scripture aloud and joining an object lesson on the difference between talking about work and actually doing it. The lesson walks through Genesis 2 and 3, Ezekiel 16, Exodus 20, Proverbs 14, Colossians 3, 2 Thessalonians 3 and Ephesians 4, explaining: - Why work was God's good design before the fall (Genesis 2:15) - Why God cursed the ground, not the work (Genesis 3:17-19) - How hard work protects us from "fullness of bread" and "abundance of idleness" (Ezekiel 16:49) - What God's six-day pattern teaches about laziness and overwork (Exodus 20:9) - Why a willingness to work is a heart check for children and for marriage - What "profit" means in Proverbs 14:23, and why talk leads only to penury - Why we work heartily, as to the Lord (Colossians 3:23) - Paul's example, difference between "could not" and "would not"

Proverbs 9:1-3 — Wisdom already built the house, killed the meat, and set the table. You can't earn a seat at a table that's already set. This expository preaching message through Proverbs 9:1-3 shows that Wisdom has built the house, hewn the seven pillars, killed the beasts, mingled the wine, and furnished the table before she says a word. If you've been trying to earn your way to God, this message on salvation by grace, not works, is for you. The sermon follows Joseph's brothers to Egypt with double money, a jar of honey, and a bag of almonds, and finds that their bill was paid before they left home. Some of us still walk into the house of God with our hands full. This Proverbs 9 sermon shows why every verb in Wisdom's list belongs to her, why the call comes last, and why you can leave the double money at home. Wisdom has a name. Paul calls Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God, and at the cross He said "It is finished" and sent out the call: come, for all things are now ready. This expository sermon walks through Proverbs 9:1-3, Genesis 42-43, Matthew 22, and 1 Corinthians 1, explaining: - Why Proverbs 9:1-3 says "she hath" six times: the work is finished before the call - What "builded her house" means: a house, not a tent - Why the seven pillars were hewn by hand, and what they cost - Why "she hath killed her beasts": nobody gets a plate of meat until something died - Why no verb in the list belongs to the guest - How Joseph's brothers show what it looks like to try to pay for a gift - Why the hardest thing to believe is that you don't have to provide anything - Why Wisdom cries "upon the highest places of the city" above the noise

3 John 5-6 — Christian hospitality is faithfulness with your sleeves rolled up. Somebody is about to knock on your door. Who answers? This expository preaching message through 3 John 5-6 puts two men side by side: Gaius, who opened his door to traveling preachers, and Diotrephes, who shut his and stood guard at the church house. Same preachers, same night, two different doors. If you've wondered what Christian hospitality actually looks like, or how to support missionaries and God's servants in a way that pleases the Lord, this sermon walks through exactly what John commended. John never called Gaius generous or gifted. He called him faithful. That one word reshapes how we think about serving the brethren and entertaining strangers. Your door might be a front door, a kitchen table, or a checkbook, but sooner or later the Lord's people will knock on it. This message is for the believer who punches a clock and thinks he has nothing to give, and for the family that has never had the visiting couple over for supper. John writes that Gaius brought the brethren forward on their journey "after a godly sort." This sermon explains what that phrase means, why God's servants don't get our leftovers, and how Christ Himself took us in as strangers and made us sons. This expository sermon walks through 3 John 5-7, Matthew 10, Titus 3, Genesis 14, Philippians 4 and Ephesians 2, explaining: - Why John calls Gaius faithful, not generous or gifted - What a faithful man does: he believes God, obeys God, loves the brethren, and finishes what he starts - Why your ordinary paycheck is a supply line for the gospel - Why "and to strangers" is the hard part of verse 5

What a family integrated church service looks like: kids reciting Scripture, preaching Daniel in the lions' den, and singing together. This family integrated church service shows what it looks like when children and teens take part in worship: reciting Scripture memory verses, leading hymns, and preaching God's Word to the whole congregation. The main message is "Daniel the Brave," a youth sermon on Daniel in the lions' den (Daniel 6) and the courage to give a respectful "no" to something wrong. Daniel knew the decree was signed, and he went home, opened his windows, and prayed exactly as he always had. This message asks what that kind of brave, quiet faithfulness looks like for a Christian today, and why it matters that the enemy can find nothing wrong with us except our faith. Also in this service: a youth message on Psalm 23, a message on Proverbs 3:5-6 about whom we can trust, and a closing message on purposing in your heart (Daniel 1:8). This service walks through Daniel 6, Psalm 23, and Proverbs 3, explaining: - Why "The Lord is my shepherd" is personal, and the four things a sheep needs gone before it lies down - Why "follow me" in Psalm 23:6 means goodness and mercy pursue you - Why it is right and brave to give a respectful "no" to something that is wrong - Why Daniel's enemies could find no fault in him except concerning his God - Why Daniel kept praying with his windows open after the decree was signed - How Daniel answered the king with respect and gave God the glory - How Daniel coming out of the den points to Christ coming out of the tomb - Why Proverbs 3:5-6 means being careful whom we trust (Samson, Amnon, the unnamed prophet of 1 Kings 13)

John 11:38-44 — Lazarus raised from the dead after four days. Martha said it was too late. Jesus didn't argue. He shouted. This sermon on Lazarus raised from the dead walks through John 11:38-44, the moment Jesus stands at a sealed grave and a grieving sister tells Him it's too late. If you've ever wondered why God seems late, or felt like your situation has an expiration date, this message is for you. This verse-by-verse expository preaching through John 11 shows what Jesus does with our objections: He doesn't argue. He gives us His word. Martha called Him Lord and still gave Him a deadline. We do the same. We trust God with heaven, but Wednesday afternoon is the problem, when the diagnosis, the phone call or the layoff comes. Jesus tells her, "Said I not unto thee," and then does what no man can do: He calls a four-day-dead man out of the grave by name. This message walks through John 11:38-44, explaining: - Why Jesus had the men roll away a stone He could have moved with a word - How grief renamed Martha "the sister of him that was dead" - Why we trust God with heaven but doubt Him on an ordinary Wednesday - Why Jesus answers our objections with His word instead of arguments - Why Jesus prayed out loud at the grave, and what Elijah on Mount Carmel has to do with it - How "Lazarus, come forth" ties back to the Good Shepherd calling His sheep by name in John 10 - Why a believer who dies only "changes pastures" and never changes shepherds - How the same voice will empty every grave at the coming of Christ - Why Jesus says "Loose him, and let him go," and what the church owes new believers

3 John 3-4 — Your children can't see your soul. They can see your walk. A sermon on walking in truth and raising children who do. This family integrated church sermon from 3 John 3-4 asks the question behind every Christian parent's prayer: what report is getting back about how I walk? John had no greater joy than to hear that his children walk in truth, and the report came by the brethren who saw it. This verse-by-verse expository preaching through 3 John shows why knowing the truth is not the same as walking in it. Some of us know the truth in the pew and lose it in the parking lot. Everything the colt learned in the round pen stays in the pen when the gate opens. If you grew up in church, can quote John 3:16, and still wonder why the truth hasn't reached your feet, this message is for you. It will also challenge every father and mother who wants Christian parenting that works: your children read your walk before they hear your talk. The sermon also sets Gaius against Diotrophes, two men in the same church under the same preaching, with two different walks and two different reports. It ends with encouragement for the parent who is still praying for a child who hasn't come home. This sermon walks through 3 John 3-4, John 14:6, 1 John 1:6 and 2:6, 1 Corinthians 4:15, Proverbs 23:24, 27:11 and 10:1, and Isaiah 53:10, explaining: - How John knew Gaius's soul prospered: a soul nobody could see showed up in a walk everybody could see - Why knowing the truth is not the same as having the truth - Why the truth is a person (John 14:6), and what happens when the truth moves in - How to walk in truth: one step at a time, Monday through Saturday

Mark 15:20 — Why did the soldiers put His own clothes back on Jesus? A crucifixion of Jesus sermon on who He is, and why He is still King. This expository preaching message from Mark 15:20 follows the crucifixion of Jesus through the clothes He wore: the purple robe of mockery, the crown of thorns, the coat the soldiers gambled for, the grave clothes, and the robe dipped in blood in Revelation 19. As a family integrated church sermon, it also asks what costume your family has put on Jesus, and where you have kept Him: in the Sunday closet, on the wall, or on the throne. The world still dresses Jesus the way it wants Him: a good teacher, a Sunday suit, a name you call when the doctor's report is bad. Pastor Fortunato shows from Mark that none of it changes who He is. These same clothes healed the woman in Mark 5 and shone on the mount in Mark 9, and He went out to be crucified in them, as Himself. Walking through Mark 15, Mark 14, Mark 5, Mark 9, Mark 3, Isaiah 63, Revelation 19, and Hebrews 13, this sermon explains: - Why the soldiers mocked Jesus, and why Mark calls it worship (Mark 15:16-20) - Why "good teacher" is another costume people put on Christ (Mark 14:61-62) - Why His own clothes were put back on Him before He was led out to crucify Him - Why His hands were bound, and what those same hands had done - How the soldiers gambled for His coat and still missed the man (Mark 15:24) - Why no one spoke for Jesus on the road, and what Peter's denial says about us - The trade at the cross: the righteousness of Christ for our filthy rags (2 Corinthians 5:21) - Why His own brothers, who called Him "beside himself," came to believe (Mark 3)

James 3:13-18 — Strife and bitterness in your home mean something is wrong at the source. Godly wisdom from above brings a peaceful home. ⛪ Preached at Pilgrim Baptist Church's 3rd Annual Family Camp • Cookeville, TN • October 6, 2026. This family integrated church sermon from James 3:13-18, featuring guest preacher Pastor Thomas Irvin, answers a question every husband, wife, and parent eventually asks: why is there strife in the home? If your house is full of bitterness, envy, and confusion, this message says the cause is the source of wisdom you are following, and it shows how to replace earthly wisdom with godly wisdom from above. Pastor Irvin shows from James 3 why a man can build a house and still lose his home, why bitterness is nearly impossible to undo once it takes root, and why the first step is being willing to be taught. He also shows how to change course at home patiently, kindly, and together, without tearing the house apart. If you want a peaceful home, strife in the home has to be traced back to its source. Walking through James 3, 1 Corinthians 3, Philippians 3, Jude, 1 Timothy 6, and Philippians 2, this sermon explains: - Why the problem is not a lack of information but a lack of teachability (James 3:13) - The difference between wisdom that builds a house and wisdom that builds a home - Why meekness marks real wisdom, and why you need godly men to show you - Why bitter envying and strife in the home point to the wrong source of wisdom (James 3:14-16) - Why bitterness is nearly impossible to undo once it sets in - How to change your home's direction patiently, without ripping everything out overnight - What godly wisdom looks like: pure, peaceable,

Proverbs 5:15-21 — Why do marriages drift apart after the kids leave? A biblical marriage message on keeping the wife of your youth. ⛪ Preached at Pilgrim Baptist Church's 3rd Annual Family Camp • Cookeville, TN • October 6, 2026. This family integrated church sermon from Proverbs 5:15-21, featuring guest preacher Mike Loftin, takes on a question most couples avoid: why do people stay married for thirty years, watch the children leave home, and then end up divorced, or in the same house and miserable? If you want to keep your marriage strong, this biblical marriage message says it comes down to one thing, spending time, and it shows what happens when you do not. Pastor Loftin preaches as a man who has been married for thirty years to his high school sweetheart. He explains why a deeper love grows over time, why hard times draw a couple closer, and why a marriage built only on the physical will not hold. He also tells how he answered a woman who tried to flatter him, and why every husband and wife should be ready with an answer when temptation comes. Walking through Proverbs 5, Malachi 2, Genesis 2, Ecclesiastes 9, and 1 Peter 3, this sermon explains: - Why you must make time for your spouse or you will drift apart - What it means to drink waters out of your own cistern (Proverbs 5:15) - Why the wife of thy youth is your companion and the wife of thy covenant (Malachi 2:14) - What the Bible says about putting away a spouse (Malachi 2:16) - Why you cannot grow closer to the Savior and farther from your spouse - Why the standard is "How does God treat me?" for wife, husband, and children - How to keep your marriage joyful through communication and being easily entreated

Genesis 37 — Family secrets, favoritism, and bitterness tear families apart. Joseph's story shows how God can heal a broken family. This family integrated church sermon from Genesis 37 asks how a family ends up lying to its own father over a blood-soaked coat. Nobody wakes up and decides to sell a brother. It starts small, and it starts at home. If you are living with a broken family, a hidden hurt, or a brother or sister you cannot speak peaceably to, this verse-by-verse message on Joseph and his brothers is for you. Pastor Fortunato traces the road to the pit: a father's favoritism, a son's poor timing, brothers consumed by envy, and a secret kept for twenty years. He also shows where the story leads, to Joseph forgiving the brothers who sold him. If you have been hurt by your own family, or you are the one who needs to bring something into the light, this message on forgiving family and healing a broken home will meet you where you are. Walking through Genesis 37, 27, 28, 42, 45, and 50, with Acts 7 and James 3, this sermon explains: - How favoritism in a home sets the stage for hatred between brothers - How a family pattern is inherited from one generation to the next (Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob, Joseph) - What envy does when it moves from the heart to the hands (Acts 7:9; James 3:16) - Why being right does not make you wise - Why every family secret is a fig leaf that never holds - How the goat that deceived Isaac comes home to deceive Jacob - Why Joseph weeps aloud, and why a man who never cries should be concerned - Why forgiveness and trust are two different things - Why you do not have to sit in God's place to settle the score (Genesis 50:19-20)

Ephesians 3:12-21 — You belong to the family of God, and hidden sin never stays hidden. Thomas Irvin on family and fatherhood. This family integrated church sermon from Ephesians 3:12-21, featuring guest preacher Pastor Thomas Irvin, asks a question most of us avoid: who is your family? Pastor Irvin walks through what it means to belong to the family of God in heaven and earth, and why every believer, and especially every father, answers to that family in everything he does, even when he thinks nobody sees. Pastor Irvin never knew his earthly father. He preaches from experience on what it means to have a Father in heaven, and from Scripture on how God reckons a household by its head. Whether you grew up without a father, are leading a home now, or are hiding something you think no one knows about, this message on the family of God is for you. Using Ephesians 3, Ephesians 2, Numbers 26, Judges 6, John 1, and John 3, this sermon explains: - How a person becomes part of the family of God (John 1:12; John 3:18) - Why Christians are told to love one another again and again - Why believers are not "free from righteousness" the way the lost are - Why God sees your family as represented by its head (Numbers 26) - Why your private choices are never really private - How a hidden relationship and secret messages brought one man's life down - How God used Gideon, the least in his father's house - Why you cannot be saved by standards, and why standards still matter after you are saved