Aletheia Church, Providence Ri

At the beginning John's Gospel, he doesn't give us an account of shepherds, or inns, or Mary and Joseph. Instead, he introduces us to Jesus as God the Word. In this Christmas sermon, Pastor Justin explains what this title means and why it's really, really good news.

In this sermon, Pastor Justin teaches from a familiar Christmastime passage—the three wise men. We don't know much about these wise men, but we know they were one of the few people to recognize that God had done something special in giving Jesus Christ. Their response? To give generously back to him.

In his account of Jesus's death, Mark stays away from the gory details of crucifixion and focuses instead on the isolation that Jesus experienced. In this sermon, Pastor Justin answers the question, Why was King Jesus forsaken by everyone in his death, including God the Father?

The temple in Jerusalem had been the center of religious and political life for the Jewish people. But Jesus predicted that it would be destroyed, and that its destruction would mean an unprecedented time of upheaval. In a time when the world can feel like it's coming apart at the seams, Jesus's words to his disciples are as timely for us as they were for them.

When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem, he confronts the Jewish rulers. His accusation is that they're pretending to be all about God but their hearts are really invested elsewhere. They're pretending. In this sermon, Pastor Justin shows how the same places pretense used to hide for them are the same places pretense hides for us today.

The Gospel of Mark has been building in momentum and tension as Jesus and his disciples make their way to Jerusalem. When they finally arrive, Jesus uses the image of a fruitless fig tree to illustrate the kind of fruitless faith he see in the temple. In this sermon, Pastor Justin describes the signs and dangers of fruitless faith, as well as the power for fruitful faith.

Sometimes everything seems like a ploy for power. Politicians volley for our votes, celebrities demand our attention, and we even seek acclaim for ourselves. In this sermon, however, Pastor Justin uses Mark 10 to unpack how Jesus's view on power upends the expectations of the rich and poor alike.

Have someone ever been too busy to meet with you? Oftentimes, big, important people are inaccessible to average humans. If Jesus is infinitely important person, we would expect the distance between our Lord and ourselves to span an eternal distance. However, using Mark 9, Jonathan Cothron shows that Jesus is the kind of leader who wants passionately to commune with His disciples.

Chapter 8 is a turning point in the Gospel of Mark. After Peter proclaims Jesus to be the Christ, Jesus starts telling them he's going to suffer, die, and rise again. He then says that anyone who wants to be his disciple will need to take up a cross of their own. In this sermon, Pastor Justin looks at Jesus's four reasons that carrying a cross is necessary and really good news.

In Mark 5, Jesus says yes when Jairus asks him to heal his daughter. But on the way Jesus gets delayed, and Jairus's daughter dies. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks the way this passage helps us trust Jesus in the times he seems late in showing up to help us.

One of the notable things about Mark's Gospel is the small amount of Jesus's teaching included in it compared to other Gospels. In this sermon, Pastor Justin looks at one of the portions of Jesus's teaching Mark chose to include and explains why it's so important in understanding the upside-down kingdom of God.

When Jesus first confronts the religious leaders in his day, it showed just how different kingdom life is from a life characterized by religion. In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains how religion and the gospel have very different things at their core.

Mark recounts four stories from Jesus's ministry in which he shows his authority over people's problems. An unclean spirit, all different diseases, leprosy, and paralysis—none of these could stand in the way of Jesus's power. In the final story, however, Jesus explains that he's doing much more than just fixing people's problems. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks the profound way in which Jesus deals with our conflicts.

Like any good superhero movie, Jesus begins his mission by putting a team together. But he does it in a completely upside-down way. In this sermon, Pastor Justin preaches on Jesus's call to discipleship and what it means for those who say yes.

We all have our own ideas of the kind of king Jesus should be. At the beginning of Mark's account of Jesus's life, however, he deeply roots Jesus's story in the story of Israel. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks the important ways that Jesus fulfills the story of Israel, and how Israel's story is the story of us all.

Evangelism should be a regular part of life for a Christian. However, there are mixed messages that often undercut the true power of the gospel we're called to share. In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains why evangelism is so important and reveals the mixed messages that so often muddy the gospel message.

The way John ends his letter is unexpected. Although he repeats themes over and over in the letter, he chooses to end the letter by telling them to "keep themselves from idols." In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains the brilliance of John's final encouragement and the way it assures his listeners that in choosing Jesus they've made the right choice.

In the beginning of chapter five of 1 John, he says that those who are born of God "overcome the world." In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks just what John means by this famous phrase, and how it's different than we might expect.

In a world of counterfeits, how can we know who or what is deserving our trust? In this installment of the Substance series, Kevin McKenzie helps us understand how true love — God's love — gives us discernment, confidence, and security.

Every family has a family culture. The same is true of God's family. In this sermon, Jonathan Cothron explores what it looks like for Christians to carry out God's family culture of loving one another.