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In this sermon, Colin shows us how Ecclesiastes challenges our attempts to master life on our own terms. Through the Preacher's search for the good life, we discover that the good life isn't something we can achieve through wisdom, pleasure, wealth, accomplishments, or work. It isn't something we can secure, because time marches on, death is inevitable, and life is unpredictable. Instead, the good life is something we receive as a gift from God. Ecclesiastes calls us to fear God and keep His commandments. The gospel reveals that Jesus achieved what we could not through His perfect obedience, secured what we could not through His resurrection, and freely offers what we could never earn—eternal life. Bottom Line: Stop trying to master your life. Submit your life to the Master.

From an initial glance, Mark's story might seem "boring." He was raised in a Christian family, attended a Christian school, and came to Christ at a young age. Nevertheless, self-deception and a false sense of self-reliance followed Mark wherever he went, and always there was that question: "How do I know that I'm truly saved?" Listen to Mark's story of a slow but steady growth through God's hand in his circumstances, ultimately decreasing his doubts and increasing his faith. Remember: "No testimony is boring because it's not your testimony; it's God's!"

In Philippians 4:4–9, Paul gives practical instructions for living a life worthy of the gospel. While these familiar verses are often applied to life's difficulties and personal anxieties, in this sermon, Pastor Tim points out how their context reveals another important application: maintaining unity in our relationships. Paul teaches that rejoicing, gentleness, prayer, and godly thinking not only help us face life's difficulties but also transform how we treat one another.

In Luke 24, Jesus says that the Psalms point us to him. In this sermon, Pastor Steve shows us how the Psalms give God’s people words for worship in every season of life: joy, sorrow, guilt, fear, gratitude, suffering, and hope. The Psalms are the heartfelt cries of God’s people, and Jesus is God’s answer to those cries! He is the answer when we need forgiveness, when we praise God’s mighty works, when we lament evil in the world, and when we long for God’s promises to be fulfilled. The wisdom of the book of Psalms is this: we learn how to worship God in every one of life's circumstances by seeing Christ as the answer!

Is God good? At some point in our lives, each of us has to answer this question, and this question is the heart of the book of Job. In this sermon, Pastor Tim walks us through the problems of faith that Job's story raises and the beauty of trusting God, even when all of life falls apart.

Introducing the wisdom books, Pastor Steve first takes us through I Corinthians 1, preaching on Christ Jesus who is the ultimate wisdom. While the world presents many counterfeit wisdoms, only God's wisdom is what is needed. The cross may appear as foolishness to the outside world, but its message is the only true one.

In this sermon, Pastor Steve reminds us of the imperative to be baptized after being saved, based on the teachings of Matthew 28 and Acts 8.

In the conclusion to our "History Lessons" sermon series, Colin Earle leads us through the book of Esther. He outlines how God is always at work, whether or not we can see it, through even the most unexpected means--a pagan queen, a sleepless night, the roll of the dice, and even through our enemies. If God is sovereign over all (and He is!), then He also has a plan for you where you are now, a plan for such a time as this.

In this week's book, Nehemiah, Pastor Steve preaches on how godly leadership has three marks: prayer, action, and response to God's Word. Nehemiah modeled this kind of leadership when he prayed over Jerusalem's brokenness, acted wisely to rebuild the walls despite opposition, and led the people to repentance, worship, and joy when the Scriptures were read to them. Every Christian has influence, whether a formal leader or not, so we should all be growing as people of prayer, action, and the Word!

We're coming to the end of "History Lessons," as Pastor Steve preaches on the book of Ezra. In it God gives his people another chance after exile. He moves the Persian kings to send them back to Jerusalem, and even provide supplies for them to rebuild the temple -- showing that God is sovereign and merciful. While rebuilding the temple, we see God’s people face opposition, but God is always working behind the scenes. Ezra ends by calling God’s people to repentance and costly obedience, reminding believers of Jesus's perfect obedience and his promise of the Spirit to help us obey him.

In the second part of his walk through Chronicles, Dr. Michael Breece extends his definition of a whole heart. Through a handful of the kings of II Chronicles, it quickly becomes apparent that a whole heart is not merely a one-time event, but a life-long commitment to guarding against pride and courageously placing faith in the goodness of God.

How do you go from going through the motions of Christianity to being transformed? Sometimes it takes rising to the top, only to lose everything. That was the case for Allen, but what the Lord took away, He more than replaced in a new faith, a new commitment to the Word, and most importantly, a new and eternal life.

"Blessing and prosperity flow through a whole heart."  According to Dr. Michael Breece, this is the theme of both I and II Chronicles, and in this next sermon in "History Lessons," he explains what a whole heart is through the book of I Chronicles. This history book is full of examples -- from David himself to the tribes that came to make him king.

Continuing "History Lessons," Pastor Steve preaches on II Kings. It shows Israel and Judah’s spiritual decline ending in destruction because their kings and people turned from God, worshiped idols, and became like the surrounding nations. Their exile was not proof that God failed, but that God kept his covenant warnings. Their example forces us to examine own own lives: are we worshiping God rightly, resisting being conformed to the world, and becoming more like Jesus? Only he is the perfect King, who (unlike Israel and Judah's kings) leads his people into righteousness and life!