Thousand Hills Cowboy Church

Thousand Hills
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Weekly

We hope to create an atmosphere of worship that you can feel and sermons that you can understand. A place where anyone, “cowboy” or not can hear God’s word.

  1. Sep 6

    I Am the Light of the World: The Claim, the Conflict, and the Call to Follow Christ

    Drawing from John 8:12-19, this sermon centers on Jesus's bold declaration that he is the light of the world, one of his great "I Am" statements rooted in the divine name revealed to Moses in Exodus. The pastor connects this claim to its Old Testament backdrop, particularly the Feast of Tabernacles, where massive oil lamps illuminated the temple courts as a remembrance of the pillar of fire that guided Israel through the wilderness. Jesus stands in that very setting and declares himself to be the fulfillment of every shadow and foreshadowing the Old Testament pointed toward. The sermon examines the immediate conflict with the Pharisees, who challenged Jesus on the grounds that self-testimony was legally insufficient, and explains why their objection failed to account for the divine authority of the one speaking. The pastor also emphasizes the inseparable relationship between knowing the Son and knowing the Father, warning that a self-constructed idea of God apart from Jesus is not the God of the Bible. The sermon closes with a call to admit personal darkness, follow Christ in genuine obedience, and bear witness to a world stumbling in spiritual blindness. Key Points: - Jesus's "I Am" declaration in John 8:12 echoes the divine name revealed to Moses in Exodus, identifying him as the eternal God in human flesh - The Feast of Tabernacles provides the immediate backdrop for Jesus's claim, as the temple was lit with large oil lamps commemorating the pillar of fire that led Israel through the wilderness, making his declaration that he is the true light all the more striking - Light in this context means that Jesus reveals reality, exposes what is hidden in darkness, guides the way forward, and gives eternal life to those who follow him - The promise that those who follow Jesus will never walk in darkness is not a vague hope but a guarantee, describing a daily direction of life rather than a one-time decision - The Pharisees judged Jesus according to outward, fleshly appearances, missing the divine authority standing before them, a mistake that continues today when people evaluate Jesus through the lens of culture, politics, or personal preference - The two witnesses Jesus appeals to are himself and God the Father, whose testimony was given at Jesus's baptism, through miracles, through fulfilled prophecy, and through the holy life of Christ - Knowing the Father is impossible apart from knowing the Son, meaning a self-constructed idea of God that bypasses Jesus is an idol, not the living God of Scripture - God's sovereignty is on display in the closing note of the passage, as no one could seize Jesus because his appointed hour had not yet come - Since Jesus is the light, believers must admit their own darkness and sin, follow Christ in faith that produces obedience, and bear witness to others as the Father bore witness to the Son - The resurrection is presented as the greatest proof of Jesus's identity, and the empty tomb forms the foundation of the witness Christians are called to carry into the world Scripture Reference: - John 8:12-19, the primary passage, in which Jesus declares himself the light of the world and defends his testimony before the Pharisees - Exodus 3, where God reveals himself to Moses as "I Am" - Exodus 13, referencing the pillar of fire that guided Israel through the wilderness - Genesis 1, where God speaks light into existence at creation - Psalm 27, where the psalmist describes the Lord as his light and salvation - Isaiah 9, where a great light is promised to people walking in darkness - John 5:36, where Jesus points to his works as the Father's authenticating witness Stories: - The pastor uses the humorous illustration of waking in the middle of the night, seeing a shadowy shape in a dark room, and fearing the worst, only to discover when the light is turned on that it is merely a coat left in an unusual place, as a relatable way of showing how light reveals reality and dispels false perceptions - The account of Moses encountering God at the burning bush in Exodus 3 is referenced to ground the "I Am" language Jesus uses in its Old Testament context - The Feast of Tabernacles setting is described, including the lighting of large oil lamps to commemorate the pillar of fire from the Exodus, establishing the visual and theological backdrop for Jesus's declaration - The baptism of Jesus is briefly referenced as the moment the Father audibly bore witness to the Son, satisfying the legal requirement of two witnesses that the Pharisees cited - The early church's witness in the Roman Empire is mentioned as a historical example of ordinary people carrying the light of the gospel into a hostile world and transforming it

  2. Aug 30

    Grace Without Excuse: The Woman, the Accusers, and the Christ Who Condemns Neither

    Drawing from the passage in John 7:53 through 8:11, this sermon explores the account of the woman caught in adultery, beginning with an honest and thorough examination of why this passage appears in brackets in modern Bible translations. The pastor explains the basics of textual criticism, the canon of Scripture, and how the church recognized rather than created the inspired Word of God. He argues that while this passage is likely not original to John's Gospel, it contains no theological contradiction and likely reflects authentic oral tradition about Jesus. The sermon then moves into the theological weight of the narrative itself, exposing the hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees, the grace and authority of Christ, and the inseparable relationship between justification and sanctification. The pastor warns against cheap grace, calling the congregation to genuine repentance and a life transformed by the Holy Spirit. Key Points: - Modern Bible translations bracket John 7:53 through 8:11 not because of tampering but because the earliest and most reliable Greek manuscripts do not contain this passage - The church did not create the canon of Scripture but recognized it, much like a thermometer does not create temperature but measures it - The criteria used by early church councils to recognize canonical books included apostolic authorship or association, theological orthodoxy, and widespread acceptance across the church - The scribes and Pharisees were not motivated by devotion to the law of Moses but by a desire to destroy Jesus, using the woman as bait in a carefully constructed trap - The absence of the man in the adultery accusation reveals the Pharisees' hypocrisy, since the law of Moses demanded both parties be held accountable - Jesus does not minimize the woman's sin but elevates the standard of the law to its full spiritual application, turning the mirror back on her accusers - Christ's declaration that he does not condemn the woman is a portrait of justification, grounded in the doctrine of imputation, where his righteousness is credited to the sinner - The command to go and sin no more is inseparable from the pardon, demonstrating that genuine grace produces genuine transformation - Cheap grace, which seeks pardon without submitting to the Lordship of Christ, is no grace at all - Justification and sanctification are inseparable; a person who claims to be saved but shows no evidence of being changed by the Holy Spirit should examine whether they have truly been born again Scripture Reference: - John 7:53 through 8:11, the account of the woman caught in adultery, serves as the primary text - Supporting references include Leviticus 20:10 and Deuteronomy 22:22 on the Mosaic penalty for adultery, Ephesians 2:20 on the foundation of apostles and prophets, Luke 24:44 on Jesus affirming the Old Testament canon, Jude 3 on contending for the faith once for all delivered, Romans 3:10 on the universal sinfulness of man, and John 10:27 on the sheep hearing the shepherd's voice Stories: - The account of Adam and Eve hiding from God after eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is referenced to illustrate humanity's instinct to conceal sin rather than face exposure - The pastor uses the illustration of reconstructing the Declaration of Independence from thousands of handwritten copies to explain how the volume of manuscript evidence protects the reliability of the biblical text and how textual variants are identified and handled - The narrative of the woman caught in adultery is treated as a historically credible oral tradition, even if not originally part of John's Gospel, and is preached as a portrait of Christ's grace confronting both self-righteous accusation and genuine guilt

  3. Aug 23

    Never Has a Man Spoken Like This: The Living Water and the Blindness of Religious Pride

    Sermon Summary: Drawing from John 7:44-52, this sermon examines the closing scene of the Feast of Tabernacles, where the crowd is divided over Jesus, the temple officers return empty-handed in astonishment, and the Pharisees respond with contempt and arrogance. The pastor revisits the previous week's themes of spiritual thirst, the invitation to come and drink, and the promised rivers of living water flowing from the Holy Spirit, before turning to the sobering reality that religious knowledge and moral performance can coexist with a complete rejection of Christ. The sermon calls listeners to examine their own thirst, their own religion, and whether the rivers of the Spirit are truly flowing in and through their lives. Key Points: -Divine restraint holds back human depravity, as the enemies of Jesus could not seize him before God's appointed time, demonstrating that God sovereignly works out his purposes in all things -The temple officers, hardened and experienced men, were undone by the authority of Jesus's words, yet returned to their superiors unchanged, illustrating the danger of near-conversion, where one can be impressed by Christ without being transformed by him -The Pharisees responded to the officers' report not with theological engagement but with contempt for the common people, revealing that religion without regeneration produces pride, hardness of heart, and contempt rather than compassion -Nicodemus offered a weak, procedural defense of Jesus, appealing to due process rather than confessing Christ, showing the posture of a man not yet fully convinced -The Pharisees' claim that no prophet comes from Galilee was factually and scripturally wrong, as Jonah was from Galilee and Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah's ministry would begin in that very region, exposing how pride blinds people to their own scriptures -It is possible to be deeply religious, to know scripture thoroughly, and to be morally upright while completely missing Jesus Christ -The invitation to come and drink is open to all, not after getting one's life in order, but broken, empty, and desperate -Every believer who has received the Holy Spirit should have rivers flowing outward into their marriage, workplace, community, and witness to the lost -Humanity's sinful nature is inherited from Adam and is displayed even in small children without being taught, confirming the biblical truth that all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory -Salvation is not a human achievement or a ladder climbed toward God but is God reaching down, drawing people to himself through Christ alone Scripture Reference: John 7:44-52, the primary passage, covering the failed arrest of Jesus, the officers' astonished response, the Pharisees' contemptuous reaction, and Nicodemus's cautious defense John 7:37-39, revisited from the previous week, containing Jesus's invitation to the thirsty and the promise of rivers of living water, interpreted by John as pointing to the gift of the Holy Spirit John 6:44, where Jesus teaches that no one can come to him unless the Father draws him John 3:16, the declaration that God gave his only Son so that whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life Isaiah 9:1-2, prophesying that the region of Galilee, despised by the Pharisees, would see a great light 2 Kings 14:25, establishing that Jonah was from Gath Hefer in Galilee Deuteronomy 18, referenced in connection with the crowd's identification of Jesus as the prophet like Moses Romans 6:23, summarized as teaching that the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ Stories: The Feast of Tabernacles ceremony is described, in which a priest carried a golden pitcher to the Pool of Siloam, filled it with water, and returned to the temple amid trumpet blasts and the singing of the Hallel Psalms, serving as the backdrop for Jesus's declaration about living water The arrest of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane is referenced, noting that Peter drew his sword and struck the ear of a servant of the high priest, missing his head because he was a fisherman untrained in swordsmanship, and that Jesus healed the man The pastor recounts observing his young granddaughter, approximately one year old, instinctively resisting other children who showed interest in her toys without ever being taught to do so, using this as an illustration of humanity's inherited sin nature and total depravity.

  4. Aug 23

    Never Has a Man Spoken Like This: Thirst, Pride, and the Living Water

    Preached from John 7, this sermon concludes a study of the Feast of Tabernacles and the confrontation between Jesus and the religious establishment of his day. The pastor examines the divided responses to Jesus among the crowds, temple officers, and Pharisees, drawing out the dangerous reality that religious knowledge and moral effort can coexist with a complete rejection of Christ. The sermon emphasizes that Jesus alone offers living water that satisfies the deepest thirst of the human soul, that this water flows only because Christ was struck on the cross and the Spirit was poured out, and that genuine salvation produces an outward flow of grace into every area of life. The Pharisees serve as a sobering warning against spiritual pride, prejudice, and the assumption that God can only work through certain people or places. Nicodemus represents the danger of near-conversion, being drawn toward Christ but not yet fully committed. The sermon closes with a direct gospel appeal, calling the lost to come to Christ broken and empty, and calling believers to share that gospel with a thirsty world. Key Points: - Divine restraint is at work throughout the passage, as no one is able to seize Jesus because his appointed hour had not yet come, demonstrating that God sovereignly governs even the intentions of wicked men - The temple officers, hardened and experienced men, returned to the chief priests empty-handed and confessed that no man had ever spoken the way Jesus spoke, illustrating that it is possible to recognize the majesty and authority of Christ and still walk away unchanged - The Pharisees responded to the officers' report not with theological argument but with contempt for the common people, revealing that religion without regeneration produces pride, hardness of heart, and a dismissal of those considered spiritually inferior - Nicodemus attempted a weak defense of Jesus on the grounds of due process, representing a state of near-conversion in which a person is drawn toward Christ but has not yet fully believed - The Pharisees' claim that no prophet arises from Galilee was both factually wrong and a contradiction of their own scriptures, since the prophet Jonah was from Galilee and Isaiah had prophesied that the Messiah's ministry would begin in that very region - Spiritual pride causes people to become incapable of recognizing God at work when he does not conform to their expectations, just as the Pharisees wanted a Messiah who would overthrow Rome and missed the one who came to save their souls - Knowing about Christ is not the same as receiving him, just as knowing about water and being able to describe it fully does not quench thirst - The Holy Spirit could not be poured out into the church until the work of redemption was finished, meaning the river of living water could not flow until the rock was struck on the cross - Salvation is not a human achievement but a drawing by God, as Jesus stated in John 6:44 that no one comes to him unless the Father draws him - The living water Jesus promises flows not as a trickle but as a river from the innermost being of every believer, and that river should be visibly flowing into marriages, workplaces, communities, and the lives of those who are still thirsty Scripture Reference: - John 7:44-52, the primary passage covering the failed arrest of Jesus, the officers' astonished response, the Pharisees' contemptuous reaction, and Nicodemus's defense of Jesus - John 7:37-39, the preceding context in which Jesus offers living water at the Feast of Tabernacles and John explains that this referred to the coming of the Holy Spirit - John 6:44, cited to establish that salvation is a sovereign drawing by the Father rather than a human achievement - John 3:16, referenced in the gospel appeal as the foundational promise of eternal life through belief in Christ - Isaiah 9:1-2, cited to demonstrate that the Pharisees' dismissal of Galilee contradicted their own prophetic scriptures - 2 Kings 14:25, referenced to show that the prophet Jonah was from Gath-hepher in Galilee, further undermining the Pharisees' claim - Deuteronomy 18, mentioned in the context of the crowd's discussion of whether Jesus was the prophet like Moses Stories: - The Feast of Tabernacles ceremony is described, in which a priest would carry a golden pitcher to the Pool of Siloam, fill it with water, and carry it back to the temple with trumpets blowing and the Hallel Psalms being sung, serving as the backdrop for Jesus's declaration about living water - The arrest of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane is briefly referenced, with Peter drawing his sword and cutting off the ear of a temple servant, which Jesus then healed, used to illustrate the kind of hardened men the temple officers were - The pastor recounts observing his one-year-old granddaughter at a gathering, instinctively refusing to share her toys with other children without being taught to do so, used as an illustration of the doctrine of original sin and the inherited sin nature of all humanity

  5. Aug 16

    The Rock Was Struck: Jesus as the Living Water

    Preaching from John 7:37-43, this sermon examines Jesus's declaration on the final and greatest day of the Feast of Tabernacles, where he stood and cried out, inviting all who are thirsty to come to him and drink. Set against the backdrop of the water-pouring ceremony at the temple, Jesus identified himself as the fulfillment of everything the feast symbolized -- the rock struck in the wilderness, the living water, and the long-awaited Messiah. The sermon explores the universal thirst of humanity, the insufficiency of broken cisterns, and the promise that those who come to Christ by faith will have rivers of living water flowing from their innermost being. The Holy Spirit, given after Christ's glorification, is the fulfillment of that promise. The sermon closes with a call to examine personal assumptions about salvation and to come to Christ with empty hands, trusting not in human effort but in what Christ has already accomplished. Key Points: - The Feast of Tabernacles was a remembrance of God's provision during the 40 years of wilderness wandering and an anticipation of the coming Messiah - The water-pouring ceremony, drawn from the pool of Siloam and poured at the altar, was a dramatic visual prayer for rain and a remembrance of the water God provided from the rock in the wilderness - The Hallel psalms sung during the feast pointed directly to Christ -- the rejected cornerstone, the rock that produced water, and the coming deliverer - Jesus did not merely interpret the ceremony; he declared himself to be the substance of every shadow the feast represented - Every human being is spiritually thirsty by nature, and attempts to quench that thirst through career, relationships, morality, or religion amount to drinking from broken cisterns - The gospel is not a ladder of human ascent to God but a descent of God to humanity -- God draws, calls, and transforms - The invitation Jesus extends is universal in scope: "if anyone is thirsty" - True saving faith is not mere intellectual agreement with facts about Jesus but a desperate, personal drinking from Christ himself - The promise of rivers of living water flowing from the innermost being describes the indwelling Holy Spirit producing outward, visible fruit in the believer's life - The Holy Spirit could not be poured out on the church until the rock was struck -- until Christ was crucified, risen, and glorified - The crowd's division over Jesus illustrates that his words force a decision and have always brought division rather than universal acceptance - The critics who rejected Jesus on the grounds that the Messiah could not come from Galilee were operating on assumptions and missed the fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem exactly as prophecy required - Religious knowledge without submission to the truth of God can cause a person to miss Christ entirely - The gospel is not about what we do for God but about what Christ has already done -- it is not "do" but "done" Scripture Reference: - John 7:37-43 (primary text) - Leviticus 23:42 -- God's command to dwell in booths to remember the wilderness years - Isaiah 12:3 -- the joyful drawing of water from the springs of salvation, read during the water-drawing ceremony - Psalm 113-118 (the Hallel) -- sung during the feast, pointing to the exodus, the rejected cornerstone, and the coming Messiah - Psalm 118:22 -- the stone which the builders rejected becoming the chief cornerstone - Jeremiah 2 -- God's people forsaking him and digging broken cisterns that hold no water - John 6:44 -- no one can come to Christ unless the Father draws him - Exodus 17 -- Moses strikes the rock and water flows to sustain Israel in the wilderness - Numbers 20 -- Moses strikes the rock a second time, an act of disobedience that cost him entry into the promised land - Numbers 21:16-18 -- passages that informed the first-century Jewish tradition that the rock traveled with Israel through the wilderness - 1 Corinthians 10:4 -- Paul identifies the spiritual rock that followed Israel in the wilderness as Christ himself - Deuteronomy 18 -- Moses's prophecy of a coming prophet - Genesis 3 -- the fall of Adam and the origin of humanity's sinful nature Stories: - The water-pouring ceremony of the Feast of Tabernacles: each morning of the feast, a priest carried a golden pitcher to the pool of Siloam, filled it with water, and carried it back to the temple amid trumpet blasts and the singing of the Hallel psalms, pouring it at the base of the altar as a prayer for rain and a remembrance of God's provision in the wilderness - Moses striking the rock in Exodus 17, from which water gushed out to sustain Israel, presented as a type pointing forward to Christ being struck on the cross so that the living water of the Holy Spirit could flow freely - Moses striking the rock a second time in Numbers 20 in disobedience, which cost him entry into the promised land - The first-century Jewish tradition, referenced by Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:4, that the rock literally followed Israel through the wilderness and continually provided water for 40 years -- a tradition Paul applies to Christ himself - The census decree of a pagan Roman emperor that providentially brought Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem, fulfilling the prophecy that the Messiah would be born there, even as the crowd incorrectly assumed Jesus could not be the Christ because he was from Galilee - Augustine's reflection that the human heart is restless until it finds its rest in God, used to illustrate the universal spiritual thirst that only Christ can satisfy

  6. Aug 9

    The Danger of Being Almost Right About Jesus

    In this sermon drawn from John 7:25-32, the pastor confronts the spiritually deadly condition of possessing religious knowledge without genuine saving faith. Using the crowd in Jerusalem as a mirror, he warns that familiarity with the facts about Jesus is not the same as truly knowing him. The people of Jerusalem had the Scriptures, witnessed Christ's miracles firsthand, and debated his identity -- yet their unbelief and preconceived religious traditions blinded them to the very Messiah standing before them. The sermon drives home that rejecting or misunderstanding the biblical Christ is not merely an academic error but a fatal spiritual misstep that leaves a person perishing in their sins. The pastor also anchors the congregation in the sovereignty of God, demonstrating that the cross was not an accident but an eternally decreed act of redemption, and that believers are kept by that same sovereign hand. The sermon closes with an urgent call to repent and believe the gospel while the door of grace remains open. Key Points: - Being almost right about Jesus is a spiritually fatal condition, not merely an academic mistake, because it leaves a person trusting in a God of their own making rather than the Christ of Scripture - The people of Jerusalem possessed the Old Testament Scriptures and witnessed Jesus in person, yet their unbelief acted as a thick veil over their eyes, preventing them from recognizing their own Messiah - Knowing facts about Jesus -- his birthplace, his lineage, his earthly biography -- is not the same as possessing saving faith; head knowledge is not heart knowledge - When people reject or reshape the biblical Christ to fit their culture, politics, or preferences, they have created an idol, which by definition is a false god - God is simultaneously and perfectly both a God of wrath and a God of grace at all times; reducing him to only one diminishes the true God of Scripture - True knowledge of God is impossible apart from the Son; to reject Jesus is to prove one does not know the Father - The sovereignty of God is demonstrated in the fact that no one could lay a hand on Jesus until his appointed hour, proving the crucifixion was the eternal, decreed purpose of the triune God and not a tragedy that caught God off guard - Believers are kept by that same sovereign hand; their days are ordained, and nothing happens to them outside the sovereign permission of the heavenly Father - The window of grace is not unlimited; Jesus warned that a time would come when people would seek him and not find him, making the present moment urgent for repentance - Religious pride must be stripped away entirely; no amount of church attendance, baptism, moral living, or biblical knowledge can bridge the gap between a holy God and a sinful soul apart from Christ Scripture Reference: - John 7:25-32 serves as the primary text, covering the crowd's confusion about Jesus' origins, Jesus' bold public declaration of his divine commission, the sovereignty of God protecting Jesus until his appointed hour, the belief of many in the crowd, and the religious leaders sending officers to seize him - Malachi 3:1 is referenced in relation to the popular expectation that the Messiah would appear suddenly and mysteriously - Acts 2:22-24 is cited from Peter's Pentecost sermon to establish that the crucifixion was delivered by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God - John 14:6 is summarized to affirm that no one comes to the Father except through the Son - 1 Corinthians 2 is referenced regarding the natural man being unable to accept the things of the Spirit of God because they are spiritually discerned Stories: - The crowd in Jerusalem at the Feast of Tabernacles serves as the central narrative, illustrating how people who possessed the Scriptures and witnessed Jesus in person could still miss him entirely due to spiritual blindness and preconceived religious traditions - The "Ricky Bobby theology" reference is used as a contemporary illustration of fashioning a Jesus of one's own making rather than submitting to the Christ of Scripture - The book of Job is referenced as a biblical narrative demonstrating that suffering believers can trust in a sovereign God who governs all things with purpose - The book of Jonah is referenced as a narrative demonstrating that God's sovereign purposes cannot be thwarted by human resistance or circumstance - The apostle Paul's ministry from Acts is briefly referenced to illustrate that, like Jesus, Paul could not be killed before his appointed time, further demonstrating the sovereignty of God over the lives of his servants

  7. Aug 2

    The Confrontation Nobody Wanted: Exposing Religion Without Regeneration

    In this sermon drawn from John 7:19-24, the pastor examines a sharp confrontation between Jesus and the religious leaders of his day. Jesus moves from defending his authority to exposing the disobedience and hypocrisy of those who claimed to uphold the law of Moses. The sermon challenges the dangerous gap between outward religious observance and genuine heart transformation, warning that religion without regeneration leaves a person still an enemy of God. Using the example of circumcision performed on the Sabbath versus the healing of a paralyzed man on the Sabbath, Jesus dismantles the inconsistency of a religious system more concerned with man-made traditions than with the mercy and purposes of God. The sermon calls believers to pursue righteous judgment, to examine their own hearts honestly, to seek God's glory rather than their own, and to surrender wholly to Christ rather than settling for a surface-level faith. Key Points: - The religious leaders questioned Jesus's credentials rather than examining whether his teaching was true, revealing that their real problem was not theological confusion but pride and a desire to protect their authority - Religion without regeneration is dangerous; a person can perform every outward religious duty and still be an enemy of God if the heart has not been transformed - The barrier to understanding God's word is moral, not intellectual; people often know what God requires but refuse it because they are unwilling to submit - Jesus exposed the inconsistency of the religious leaders by pointing out that circumcision was lawfully performed on the Sabbath, yet they condemned him for healing an entire man on the same day, revealing that they cared more for their traditions than for human mercy - The Pharisees had buried God's simple command to rest on the Sabbath under thirty-nine categories of man-made rules, turning a gift into a prison of regulations - Righteous judgment requires looking beneath the surface of appearances, whether evaluating teachers, scripture, or one's own spiritual condition - The test of every teacher is whose glory they are pursuing - True spiritual understanding comes to those with willing hearts who commit themselves fully to doing God's will, not merely to those with the right credentials or intellectual knowledge - Jesus is not a life coach or motivational speaker but the God of the cosmos who demands complete surrender, not just portions of a person's life - Every person stands in one of two relationships with God: right or wrong, and the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only means of being made right before a holy God Scripture Reference: - John 7:19-24 (primary passage) - John 5 (the healing of the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethsaida, referenced as the "one work" Jesus mentions) - Mark 2:23-28 (Jesus's declaration that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath) Stories: - The healing of the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethsaida in John 5, performed on the Sabbath, which became the flashpoint for the religious leaders' accusation against Jesus and the foundation for his argument about circumcision versus healing on the Sabbath - The account of David eating the consecrated bread from the house of God, referenced from Mark 2, used by Jesus to demonstrate that mercy and human need have always taken precedence over rigid religious regulation - The encounter between Jesus and the rich young ruler, referenced briefly to illustrate how the religious elite of the day boasted of lifelong rule-keeping while still falling short of true obedience

  8. Jul 26

    The Source of Truth and the Battle of the Will

    Preaching through John 7:14-24, this sermon examines Jesus teaching in the temple courts during the Feast of Tabernacles without formal rabbinic credentials, and the response of the religious leaders who marveled at his authority while asking the wrong questions. The sermon establishes that Jesus' teaching originates not from himself but from God the Father, making his words the very mind of God expressed in human form. The central argument is that the barrier to spiritual understanding is not intellectual but moral, rooted in the stubbornness of the human will rather than the limitations of the human mind. The sermon also presents a test for identifying false teachers, namely whether a teacher seeks his own glory or the glory of God. The message closes with a call to salvation, urging those without genuine repentance and faith in Christ to respond before it is too late. Key Points: - The religious leaders asked the wrong question when confronted with Jesus' teaching, focusing on his credentials rather than whether his teaching was true - Jesus' teaching originates entirely from God the Father, meaning that when Jesus speaks, God speaks, and his words carry absolute divine authority - All human teachers, pastors, authors, and voices must be evaluated by whether their teaching aligns with the whole counsel of Scripture - The condition for understanding spiritual truth is not intellectual achievement but a willingness to submit to and obey the will of God - The barrier between a person and spiritual understanding is moral, not intellectual; people resist God's truth not because they cannot grasp it but because their will is bent against obeying it - A defining mark of a false teacher is that he seeks his own glory, builds a platform and an audience, and makes people dependent on his insight rather than on Scripture - A genuine believer is marked by a desire to obey God and by conviction from the Holy Spirit when they sin against him - Salvation comes through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ alone, who is the way, the truth, and the life Scripture Reference: - John 7:14-24, the primary passage, in which Jesus teaches in the temple during the Feast of Tabernacles, responds to questions about his authority, declares that his teaching comes from the Father, and instructs the crowd to judge with righteous judgment rather than by appearances - Romans 8:28, which speaks of God working all things together for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose - John 14:6, in which Jesus declares himself to be the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except through him - Hebrews, referenced in the sermon's argument that Moses does not compare to Jesus in authority and nature - Romans 3:23, which states that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God - Romans 6:23, which declares that the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ Stories: - The sermon uses the illustration of forgiving someone who has wronged you to demonstrate that the struggle with obedience is a battle of the will rather than a lack of understanding; the listener knows what forgiveness means but resists doing it because the will is bent toward revenge and payback - The sermon references the setting of the Feast of Tabernacles, describing the crowded city of Jerusalem, the temporary shelters, the priestly ceremonies, and the thousands of pilgrims present, to frame the scene in which Jesus, a carpenter from Nazareth with no rabbinic training, steps into the temple courts and begins to teach with an authority that stops people in their tracks

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We hope to create an atmosphere of worship that you can feel and sermons that you can understand. A place where anyone, “cowboy” or not can hear God’s word.

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