Sermons from March 2015

Why Celebrate Palm Sunday? (Matthew 21:1-11)

Even though there are no commands in the Bible for us to celebrate Palm Sunday, once a year the word “Hosanna” is sung, palm branches are waved and millions of people celebrate the day when Jesus rode on a colt into Jerusalem. Why is this? In this message we uncover the big announcement that Jesus made on that day; news about Himself that is so significant that its implications reverberate beyond our annual celebrations into every aspect of life.

The Habit of Following the Shepherd (Psalm 23)

Throughout the Bible Jesus is portrayed as The Good Shepherd. In this well-known Psalm, we see many of the benefits of following Christ including living with Him in Heaven for eternity. To receive the benefits, we must see ourselves in the proper perspective and follow Jesus, The Good Shepherd, wherever He leads us.

Thin Spaces (Luke 24:13-35)

All of us, no matter our status of faith, encounter times when it seems Jesus is far away. In this post-resurrection account, we find two travelers literally experiencing just that. Suddenly Jesus himself appears and as he walks with them, unbeknownst to them, Jesus listens to their hopes and dreams and disappointment, revealing a pattern for prayer for all travelers especially when…

For the Life of the World (John 6:48-51)

Often we begin our careers with high aspirations and hopes, but “reality” often collides with our dreams. The early disciples – who witnessed their Master die on a cross – must have felt the same: a crushing disappointment. Yet, as the early church remembered Jesus’s death and resurrection with wine and bread, the eucharist, their suffering was transformed into words and deeds that gave life to their neighbors. In this message, Jeff Haanen shows how our daily work can be transformed in light of Jesus’s gift of His body “for the life of the world.”

Listening to the Voice (1 Samuel 3:1-20)

Often the question is posed – “Does God still speak like He did in the Bible?” We often wonder “How does God speak?” and “Is that just me or is that God?” This message takes a look at the life of Samuel and how God greatly used him but he too had to learn God’s voice before he could listen to God’s voice and then live by God’s voice. What do you yearn to hear – God’s voice or the other voices around you?