A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Picture this scene. You pull up to the church. The lawn is littered with half-empty liquor bottles, beer cans, syringes, used needles, and various other items that you assume must be drug paraphernalia. You grab your child’s hand and pull him closer to you when you realize he’s reaching down to pick up one of those shiny objects. You try to direct his attention elsewhere. You don’t want to have to explain at this time what you see in front of the church, and you certainly don’t want him to get cut by broken glass or get poked by a dirty needle. A little further down the sidewalk, you find a pile of basketballs, soccer balls, baseballs, and softballs. You catch sight of the latest I-phones, I-pads, gaming systems, designer handbags, stock portfolio, big screen TVs, and the keys to a Cadillac Escalade just lying on the ground near the edge of the sidewalk. As you get near to t...

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Click here to listen to this sermon. “The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary” (Isaiah 50:4). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Many philosophers have said many things about holding your tongue and watching what you say. Among my favorites is Thumper: “If you can’t say some’tin nice… don’t say nothin’ at all.” Then there’s: “It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak up and remove all doubt.” (Variously attributed to Mark Twain, Abraham Lincoln, and Samuel Johnson). And finally: “That mouth of yours is going to get you in big trouble some day!” (Spoken by countless mothers and fathers throughout history). Controlling the tongue is neither simple nor easy. It is not simply a peripheral issue on the edges of Christian life, but it is the key to controlling the whole self. Someone who is careful with their words and has learned to exercise self...

"Isaiah" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. “Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you’” (Isaiah 35:4). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Why would they have an anxious heart? To know that, we need to have a little context. In the previous chapter of Isaiah, God’s prophet calls the nations to come and listen to the announcement of God’s judgment. The reason for the announcement is clearly stated: “The Lord is enraged against all the nations, and furious against all their host; He has devoted them to destruction, has given them over for slaughter” (Isaiah 34:2). The picture is not pretty. It is a brutal and gory portrayal of judgment. Mounds of rotting bodies and a landscape soaked with the blood of God’s enemies. Isaiah announces God’s judgment, particularly focusing upon Edom. But note in these verses that ...