Sermons from First Evangelical Free Church in Sioux City, IA

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Sermons for your birth into and growth in the Christian faith.

  1. Aug 1

    James 1:1-8 All Joy

    1:1 Greeting. James (the half-brother of Jesus, writing in the mid to late 40’s AD) writes to the people of God scattered about the world. He has three major topics in mind, two of which will be introduced today… 1:2-4 Counting. The trials that come in the Christian life aren’t to be despised; they aren’t reasons to distrust God. Instead, by God’s providence, the trials we endure are part of the very way that He grows and matures us. Thus, we can see even hardships as opportunities for joy rather than despair. 1:5-8 Believing. But how can we have the wisdom to navigate our trials faithfully? James writes that it is as simple as asking the Lord. We are to trust Him in all things – including that He is willing to provide what we need, when we need it. To doubt Him means that we won’t receive; to have faith in Him means that we follow Christ’s own example as we look to the Lord for all things in every circumstance. The Point: Trusting the Lord to have purpose in and to guide us through our trials is part of how we follow Jesus in this life. Prayer: Lord, we ask for wisdom because we need it. The only way we can rightly trust you and see your hand at work is if we have the wisdom that comes from above. So we ask you to provide. Help us to see your purpose in our lives, that we would have hope and joy as we follow King Jesus. Application: Adopt the Lord’s view over your own – trust His purpose and provision for every hardship in your life.

  2. Aug 1

    1 Peter 2:18-21 Tracing the Steps of Jesus

    Sermons from First Evangelical Free Church in Sioux City, IA

  3. Jul 18

    Psalm 119:49-56 Steadfast

    119:49-53 Remembering leads to comfort. God’s word gives hope to his people because when we remember it, we remember the very words and promises of our trustworthy God. This gives us comfort and helps us to remain steadfast when we go through the hardships of life because it causes us to keep our eyes (and our minds) fixed on what is true: the ways and laws of the Lord. 119:54-56 Comfort leads to (further) remembering. Note how the comfort that the Lord provides leads to further remembering of Him and His ways. The response to the Lord giving us what we need, exactly when we need it, is nothing less than worship. The Point: Delight and steadfastness in the faith come from remembering and believing what our Lord has done and promised. Prayer: Father, thank you for being a God who both makes and keeps His promises. Thank you for Jesus, the fulfillment of your promises, who gives life and hope to all who trust in Him. Help us to rely on Christ, trusting your words, as we navigate this life. Give us hope, that we would be found faithful as we await our King. Application: Pray and ask the Lord to help you remember what He has said. Ask Him for Holy Spirit-given boldness, that you would cling to His promises rather than being distracted or discouraged by a world that cares little for God’s words.

  4. Jul 17

    Psalm 119:41-48 From Promise to Praise

    119:41-43 What God promises. The psalmist highlights three ways in which God’s word gives us strength and encouragement: promises, trust, and hope. When we call on our Lord in faith, when we take His words seriously, treasuring all that He has said for us, then we grow in the faith and are able to navigate life with Christian maturity. 119:44-48 How the faithful respond. God’s words aren’t meant simply to inform us, however; rather, they are a call to faith-filled living. Because God has promised, therefore we can hold to His words and ways with confidence. What’s more, the psalmist’s example in these verses is a challenge for us: do we believe and live in these ways? If not, the call is for us to pray and trust the Lord to provide what we lack! The Point: God’s certain promises call for us to respond faithfully. We need to see – repeatedly – until we believe whole-heartedly. We’ll know that we believe when we begin to increasingly act in ways that look like walking by faith. Prayer: Lord, make us to be “rememberers” of your words. Help us to know what you have said so that we would believe, and believe to such an extent that we respond in how we live and think and hope. Thank you for giving us the scriptures so that we would better know you! Application: What’s your plan for seeing and remembering God’s laws? When will you spend time in prayer asking Him to continue the work in you that He’s already begun?

  5. Jul 11

    Psalm 119:33-40 The Life-giving Word

    119:33-35 Request. The psalmist asks for the Lord to provide not only knowledge, but also understanding and leading as well. The result is not just a better grasp on God’s law, but also a more faithful embracing and following of it. 119:36-37 Contrast. Part of learning to savor God’s ways is to call on Him to develop a taste for what He says in contrast with the tastes promoted by our world. It’s that we would see and desire Jesus more than anyone or anything else. 119:38-39 Purpose. The reasons behind the psalmist’s request are highlighted in these verses – the point isn’t simply knowledge for the sake of knowledge, but instead a response of trusting in and enjoying the Lord. 119:40 Heart. In some ways, we find here a summary of the entire stanza – a longing for the Lord by treasuring His words. The Point: The psalmist asks the Lord to work in him that he would not just know and understand, but also delight in the Lord by treasuring God’s words. Prayer: Lord, would you give us such a heart for you that we treasure each and every word you give us. Make us to love your ways and laws to such an extent that they become our delight and joy as we live them out before others. Application: ask the Lord to develop these kinds of longings in you, that you would call on Him to build within you a delight in all that He says. Here is how I will apply these truths: ___________________ __________________________________________________

  6. Jun 22

    Psalm 119:25-32 A Heart for the Word

    119:25-27 Ask for life and hope… What we need most when life is hard is for the hope that only the Lord can give. The psalmist asks for this in prayer, listening closely and attentively to the words and ways of the Lord. 119:28-30 Ask for strength… Faithfulness comes not from our own strength, but from the Lord doing the work in us and through us. When we have no strength worth looking to, trusting the Lord, desiring what He desires, is the way forward. We trust Jesus to provide all that He has promised. 119:31-32 Ask for the Lord’s work in you… Our goal is to so delight in the words of our King that we “run” in their patterns, that we would have a heart ever-more formed to love our King and joyously follow His ways. The Point: The psalmist prays that the Lord would work in him and conform him to the very ways that are prized in God’s word. Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to see ourselves rightly – as people who desperately need You for everything! And also help us to see You rightly – as our Heavenly Father who delights to provide all we need for faithfulness. Train us to love You as we treasure all that You have told us. Application: How do your prayers reflect these needs? Will you trust God to hear and to answer? Ask Him for life and hope, trust Him for strength in the proper measure and time, and call on Him to continue His work in you. Here is how I will apply these truths:

  7. Jun 22

    Psalm 119:17-24 Eyes to See

    119:17-19 Blessing in God’s will. The psalmist challenges us to seek blessing not for ourselves, but instead God’s blessing in order to do God’s will: a heartfelt desire to please God, first and foremost, instead of our own selves. 119:20-22 Blessing instead of judgment. The one who pursues the Lord, who treasures what God has said rather than what God’s enemies have said, is the one who will enjoy His blessing – and not His judgment – forever. 119:23-24 Blessing instead of despair. God’s blessing matters not just for the future, but even in the present. The way to delight is found not in focusing on those who oppose the Lord, not in how they seek to harm the ones who follow God’s words, but instead: we focus on what our Lord has said. The Point: True blessing comes from treasuring what the Lord says matters most. We see this perfectly lived out in Jesus, and His joy in the Lord is given to we who trust in Him. Prayer: Lord, let us not seek your blessing instead of You, but rather: give us hearts and minds that want You most of all – and who delight in how your word tells us of who you are. Form us, mold and re-make us, to be a people who passionately pursue knowing and doing all that You have said. Application: What needs to change in your life so that you would delight in God’s word? How will you fill your mind and heart with what God has said so that you’d delight in Jesus even when life is hard and faith isn’t easy? Here is how I will apply these truths:

  8. Jun 6

    Psalm 119:9-16 Fix Your Eyes

    119:9-11 A pure way. The picture is of a life that is transformed through devotion to God’s word. What does that look like? All throughout this stanza, a number of action words paint the way. Here: guard, seek, and store up. 119:12-14 A delightful way. The call of Psalm 119 isn’t only a call to read the scriptures. It’s more! It’s a call to delight in God’s word given to God’s people. What does that delight look like and how can we have it? The psalmist answers: teach me, declare, and delight. 119:15-16 A remembering way. Four more actions complete the picture of how we can be transformed by God’s word: we meditate, fix, delight, and not forget all that the Lord has given to us. The Point: Delighting in God’s word is knowing it and memorizing it, yes, but doing so with the aim of delighting in and treasuring our good God. Prayer: Lord, thank you for Jesus – our perfect King whose delight in your word led to the kind of obedience that brings us salvation and joy forevermore. Help us to respond with gladness to His gospel in how we, too, get to treasure and be transformed by all that you have told us. Application: How will you make time to, and be intentional about, delighting in God’s word this week? Who can you help to do the same? Here is how I will apply these truths: ___________________ __________________________________________________

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