Introduction: The presence of the Lord Jesus, alive just as He promised He would be, transforms everything. We can see this very clearly in the fall and restoration of the apostle Peter after the resurrection. The Text: “And the servants and officers stood there, who had made a fire of coals; for it…

INTRODUCTION: One of the most familiar elements of the Christmas story is the star of Bethlehem. But at the same time, it remains one of the most unknown features of the story—because unlike the wise men, we don’t really look straight at it. THE TEXT: “I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him,…

Introduction One of the most obvious symbols of the Christmas season is the star of Bethlehem. Countless Christmas cards have portrayed it, our carols sing about it, and we tell one another the story associated with it every year. In this, we frequently just skim over the surface of what we actually…

INTRODUCTION: The last description of Christ’s resurrection appearances is found in the very first part of Acts. As we celebrate His resurrection, we want to take care that we learn everything that the Scriptures teach us about it. THE TEXT: /“The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that…

INTRODUCTION: On Pentecost Sunday, we rejoice in the fact that the Comforter has been given, poured out upon us, so that the world might be prepared for the final consummation. This is a central role of the Spirit in the world, and it ties in directly with the purposes of God for this world that we have…

Introduction: Pentecost is not only an important event in the history of the Church, but is also one of the key events in the history of the world. Pentecost celebrates something that has happened to the world, and the Scriptures teach that nothing can be done to reverse this. THE TEXTS: /“Then came…

INTRODUCTION Isaiah is very concerned with the importance of names. We have seen that he named his two sons with the future of Israel in mind, and they were both types of Immanuel. And Matthew tells that the Messiah was named Jesus because He was named Immanuel. And now we come to a glorious pinnacle…

INTRODUCTION: As we celebrate the various holidays of the church year, we generally know what they are about. Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ, and Easter His resurrection. And even if you didn’t know what Ascension Day was about, you could probably guess from the name—in a “who’s buried in Grant’s…

INTRODUCTION: Last Lord’s Day, the message was brought to us from the conclusion of Isaiah 40, and we learned from that message that there are two kinds of waiting. There is a waiting that causes our strength to dissipate, and there is a waiting that gathers our strength for us. There is a waiting that…

INTRODUCTION: On Ascension Sunday, we mark the gloriouis coronation of the Lord Jesus. After His resurrection, He established to His disciples that He was in fact alive forever, and then He ascended into the heavens. When He did this, He was received by the Ancient of Days, and was given universal authority…

INTRODUCTION: We are nearing the conclusion of the historic season of Lent, the preparation season for the celebration of Easter. This is Palm Sunday, the day in which we mark and celebrate the Lord’s Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. As we are trying to orient ourselves by and with a Christian year, instead…

Introduction And the evening and the morning were the eighth day. We should not be surprised at the pattern of darkness and then light, a pattern which we see not only in the creation of the world, but also in the re-creation of all things. The Text: I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these…

INTRODUCTION In the Triumphal Entry of Christ into Jerusalem, we see that the cross is very much in view. At the same time, it is a triumphal entry because the resurrection is equally central. We might even say that the death of Christ is surrounded by resurrection. THE TEXT: 12On the next day much people…

Introduction: We are seeking to recover a Christian sense of time, and in some sense this means a recovery of the Church year. But though we are seeking to escape a secularized calendar, we must never forget that we got this secular calendar (in part) because of a reaction away from the problem of “saints…

INTRODUCTION: The Lord Jesus entered Jerusalem in great triumph. His majesty and rightful claim to the throne of David were manifest . . . to His disciples. But the established powers in Jerusalem refused to know what they had a responsibility to know. And in this, the very rocks were more spiritually…

Introduction: This is a message about three crowds. In the grip of individualism, we have too often neglected to heed what the Bible teaches about group behavior, and the results of this neglect are often tragic. The Text: “And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down…

INTRODUCTION We are in Advent, and we look forward to celebrating the birth of the Messiah. But we must do so as biblically based Christians—always building on the bedrock of the Word. THE TEXT: /Moreover the LORD spake again unto Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the…

Introduction: As we continue meditating on the meaning of Advent, we are not really resisting attempts to make Christmas meaningless as we are fighting with alternative meanings. There is no such thing (in the last analysis) as a vacuum holiday, a celebration without a point. Attempts to neutralize Christmas…

INTRODUCTION: This Lord’s Day is Ascension Sunday, the day we commemorate the exaltation of Jesus Christ at the right hand of the Ancient of Days, the day upon which He was given universal and complete authority over all nations, kings, rule and authority. Our Lord’s name is the name which is above every…

INTRODUCTION: This Lord’s Day is the first after our Thanksgiving holiday, and is also the first Sunday in Advent. Because we want to stand against what might be called morbid penitentialism, we want this season to be suffused with a glad anticipation. The only conviction we want to awaken would be a…

INTRODUCTION The second chapter of Acts is exceedingly rich, and we will not be able to take all of it in. But we should be able to mark some of the more significant features. Remember that Jesus Christ has ascended into the presence of the Ancient of Days. He has been given universal authority. On the…

INTRODUCTION A commonplace in Christian circles understands the events surrounding the first Palm Sunday to be demonstrating the “fickleness of crowds.” But there are good reasons for questioning this common assumption. THE TEXT 12On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard…

Introduction: We are fast approaching the five hundredth anniversary of the glorious Reformation. The history of the Church is always tangled, and we can never approach it in a simplistic fashion. But with all such allowances made, the Reformation was a great work of the Holy Spirit, and we are right…

INTRODUCTION: The birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem marks the Advent (arrival), not only of the long promised Messiah, but also the advent of a new humanity, established in the last Adam, the one St. Paul calls the man from heaven. We sometimes emphasize that Immanuel means “God with us,” and it does.…

Introduction: One of the great difficulties that modern Christians have is that we do not let the two testaments inform one another. Because of this neglect on our part, we miss many visions of coming glory that the Old Testament prophets set before us. The Text: /I saw in the night visions, and, behold,…