Fbc Eugene

Over the past two years, we have been traumatized by disease, disorder, disinformation, despair, and division—all potential joy-killers. Many of us can identify with King David, when he cried: “Oh God…restore to me the joy of your salvation.” (Psalm 51:12) Over the past two years, we have been traumatized by disease, disorder, disinformation, despair, and division—all potential joy-killers. Many of us can identify with King David, when he cried: “Oh God…restore to me the joy of your salvation.” (Psalm 51:12) Joy is central to what God is all about. He is the most joyful Being in all the universe, and his desire for us to know his joy is so strong, the Bible puts it in the category of a life essential. Like no other time of year, Christmas can restore our joy. Join us in this sermon as we pursue God’s joy! Read the Christmas story in Luke and Matthew to prepare.

God's provision and plan was packaged in the birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And because of Jesus we have the ability to experience the riches of our Heavenly Father and to take those riches and be a blessing to others and to live a life of response that leaves a lasting legacy of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and more! In Luke 12:13-21, Jesus shares a story about a man who missed those moments, who measured life by materialism, and made mistakes that left his life marked by earthly endeavors rather than eternal expectations. This Sunday we will be challenged, encouraged, and inspired to be people who are blessed, by God, to be a blessing and called to live a life of lasting legacy.

This parable is not often categorized as such, it appears more like a common riddle, see if you can catch and discern it when you read Matthew 15:1-20. Jesus, in this quick sentence about the mouth, upends the Pharisees purity traditions built around the Old Testament Law. Two ideas are intertwined in this passage—external religious traditions and internal purity. The first idea plays out in vv. 1–9, what goes into the mouth, the second central to vv. 10–20, what comes out of the mouth. Both combine into a theme crucial for the life of a Jesus follower, one must be controlled not so much by external codes of conduct forced from without but by the heart that proceeds from within. Therefore, you will need more than mouthwash!

When Jesus told the parable of the shrewd manager in Luke 16, I can imagine Peter leaning over to James and John and asking, “Did he just say what I thought he said?” This parable is one of Jesus’ most fascinating, if not bizarre. Why would our Lord tell a story that seems to commend scurrilous behavior? Find out in this Sermon, and be ready to be both challenged and inspired. Read Luke 16:1-13 to prepare.

The parable of the Good Samaritan is one of the most beloved, and yet most heart-searching, teachings of Jesus. The lesson is as relevant today as it was the moment Jesus spoke it. We will learn how the lawyer’s technicality question, “Who is my neighbor?” completely misses the mark and how Jesus turned the norms of that day, reflected in his question, on their head. Jesus reveals what love looks like for those whose names are written in heaven and have inherited eternal life. Read Luke 10:25-37 to prepare.

After serving 16 years as a missionary in India, 22 years as a pastor, and several years as a seminary professor, David Seamands made this observation: "Many years ago I was driven to the conclusion that the two major causes of most emotional problems among evangelical Christians are these: the failure to understand, receive, and live out God’s unconditional grace and forgiveness; and the failure to give out that unconditional love, forgiveness, and grace to other people…The good news of the gospel of grace has not penetrated the level of our emotions." In this Sermon, through a parable of Jesus, we will seek to better understand, receive, and live out God’s unconditional grace and forgiveness. We will conclude with a time of Communion. Read Luke 7:36-50 to prepare.

The parable of the ten virgins. All went out to meet the bridegroom. All had lamps with them. All fell asleep as they waited. But only five were wise. What separated the wise from the foolish? Join us this in this sermon as we unpack this parable of Jesus found in Matthew 25:1-13.

One of the great measures of Christian character is how we deal with those who hurt us. Some would say, “Don’t get mad, get even.” The Kingdom of God turns this on its head. Jesus would say, “It’s okay to be mad, but don’t get even!” “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” (Ephesians 4:26). Matthew 18:21 reports, “Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus’ answer, and the parable that follows, must have left the disciples as slack-jawed as it does me. Read Matthew 18 to prepare for this message.

Jesus told many parables about what "the Kingdom of heaven is like," but none more important than those in Matthew 13, the first of which, Jesus said is the key to understanding all his parables. In Matthew 13, Jesus shares seven parables that reveal the Kingdom of heaven on earth from now to the end of time. Nothing is more important than becoming a member of this Kingdom and being ready for the return of the King. In this sermon, we will survey all seven parables, so it is especially important to prepare by reading Matthew 13 before we gather together.

The warm, familiar, idyllic images of Jesus’ parables are a favorite part of the Bible for many, and for good reason. They reveal profound insights about God's kingdom on earth with the coming of Jesus. But these very same parables are much like that cuddly looking kitten you tried picking up and it bit you; Jesus’ parables come with a bite. For those who refuse him as their King, that bite can be deadly deep. In this sermon, we begin a new series on selected parables from the Gospel accounts of Matthew and Luke. It’s going to be quite a ride.

We need the Holy Spirit to reveal to our hearts the absolute supremacy of Christ over every power and authority in the universe and how our heavenly Father has graciously made us alive, raised us up and seated us in Christ with him in glory!

What are the first words that go through your mind when you rise every morning? A lot of people give themselves daily affirmations to start the day. The fictional comedy character Stuart Smalley would recite, in his mirror, “I’m good enough, I'm smart enough, and, doggone it, people like me!” In this message, “First Words,” new Communications Pastor Michael DiMarco will follow up Pastor Ben’s closing last words of Joshua last week with wisdom from the Book of Proverbs, both for those about to take their first steps with Jesus and those that have been walking with Him for decades.

Richard Baxter, a renowned Reformed pastor from the 1600’s, captured, in his own experience, Joshua’s urgency at the end of his life. He said, “I preached as never sure to preach again, and as a dying man to dying men.” In chapter 24, Joshua challenges Israel, after all Yahweh their Elohim had done for them, to repent of their half-hearted loyalty and choose to be fully devoted to him. What Joshua confronted in Israel that day is a common delinquency found in God’s people in both the Old and New Testaments, including our own times, maybe even in our own lives. Read Joshua 24 to prepare.

A person’s last words are typically their most significant and the most important to remember. Maybe the last words of a loved one are a treasure you hold dear in your heart. Last words matter. In the final two chapters of Joshua, he shares his own, first to his fellow leaders (chapter 23) and then to the nation as a whole (chapter 24). Joshua’s last words are a treasure we can hold dear in our hearts. They reveal the secret to overcoming spiritual strongholds in and around us, which will lead us into a time of Communion, where we remember Jesus and all he has done for us. Please read Joshua 23 to prepare.

The topic of this Sunday’s message is the danger of assumptions—how civil war nearly broke out in Israel because of wrong assumptions. Mexican author, Miguel Ruiz, wrote: We make all sorts of assumptions, because we don’t have the courage to ask questions. Without asking a question, I’m going to go out on a limb. I think it’s safe to assume that everyone reading this has experienced conflict with someone—a spouse, friend, relative, classmate, neighbor, or work colleague—over an issue you later discovered was completely unnecessary, because it was based on a wrong assumption. Israel’s story in Joshua 22 reveals important insights for the division and strife in our own times and how to deal with the danger of assumptions.

Romans 15:4 reminds us how important the Old Testament is to New Testament believers: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. Israel’s story in Joshua helps us better understand our own story in Christ. This Sunday, we will explore four important insights from Israel’s inheritance of the Promised Land that encourage us to endure with hope in taking possession of our own inheritance in Christ. Read Joshua chapters 13, 14, 20 and 21 to prepare. You get extra credit, if you read chapters 15-19 about tribal allotments.

We are living in the last days. The King has come! However, he only inaugurated his kingdom. Satan is defeated, but not yet dumb and destroyed. He still has his voice. He's still looking for victims. The consummation of God’s kingdom is yet to happen. Our promised inheritance in Christ is ALREADY ours in heaven, BUT NOT YET in its fullness on earth. We are living between two ages. That’s why, though redeemed in Christ, we still struggle with sin. That’s why people still rebel against the King, persecute his people, and commit all kinds of evil and appear to be getting away with it. Israel’s story, in Joshua 10:16-13:7, illustrates the times in which we live.

Joshua 10 ranks as one of the most frequently invoked passages for discrediting the Bible in the world of rationalism and science. A literal interpretation raises issues concerning the veracity of Scripture and God’s ability to do whatever he chooses. What actually happened at Gibeon on this day that the Bible claims to be unique in all of history? Did God actually stop the rotation of the earth and the revolution of the moon, so the sun and moon stood still in the sky for an entire day? Come, let’s reason together.

The Bible says the devil’s schemes come in two basic forms: 1) like a roaring lion to frighten and intimidate us and 2) like a mesmerizing angel of light to deceive and swindle us. With both, he uses human instruments in an attempt to defeat and devour us. In Joshua 9, we see both schemes at work at the same time! It’s a graphic picture of the Christian life dressed in the ancient garb of Israel’s experience. The good news is, even when we foolishly succumb to the devil’s devices, as Israel did, God leverages our short-term losses into long-term wins. God plays the long game, turning stupid into splendid. Read Joshua 9 to prepare for this message.