Story of Three Dynasties

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 16:25-28
April 14, 2024

1 Kings 16:25-28: Omri did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did more evil than all who were before him. For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in the sins that he made Israel to sin, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger by their idols. Now the rest of the acts of Omri that he did, and the might that he showed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? And Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria, and Ahab his son reigned in his place.

Sermon Outline

1. Elah: The carousing king

• His degenerate reign

• His sad end

• A warning about the worship of pleasure

• The double evil of pulling others into our own sins

2. Zimri: The tough-guy king

• He ends Baasha’s dynasty the same way it began

• His dynasty ends in a blaze of defiance

• The ultimate expression of self-determination

3. Four years of civil war

4. Omri: The winner who was a loser

• Politically a winner

• Spiritually a loser

Problem, Prayer, Promise, and Paradox

Download MP3
Speaker: Tyler Estes
Scripture: Psalm 12
April 7, 2024

Psalm 12: Save, O LORD, for the godly one is gone; for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man. Everyone utters lies to his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts, those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the LORD; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.

You, O LORD, will keep them; you will guard us from this generation forever. On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

Sermon Outline

1. David laments the problem of living in a lying society

• David observes part of the problem is that something absent should be present

• David observes another part of the problem is that something present should be absent

• David observes that the flatterers are arrogant

• David observes that the problem is pervasive

2. David prays for God to intervene

3. The promise and provision of God’s word

• When God says He will act, it is as good as done

• Consider your Bible: God speaks to you through this book

• The word of God is pure

• The word of God is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness

4. Note the paradox at the end

• God’s promise and the present reality

• What do we make of “I will now arise?”

5. Applications

• Do not despair

• Do not abandon the word of God

• Do not exalt wickedness

• Instead of exalting wickedness, exalt goodness

Adam, Christ, Easter, and You

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:19-23
March 31, 2024

1 Corinthians 15:19-23, NIV: If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

1 Corinthians 15:19-23, ESV: If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as all die in Adam, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.

Sermon Outline

1. The Bible acknowledges: When viewed a certain way, Christians appear pathetic

• Not many early Christians were high-achievers

• Many Christians appear to miss out

• Jesus’ followers sometimes lack the skills that seem to matter in this life

• If this life is all there is, Christians are to be pitied

2. The resurrection of Jesus is what guarantees the resurrection of His followers

3. Our link to Christ’s resurrection is illustrated by our link with Adam

• All human beings have moral weaknesses

• We are morally flawed because we are all descended from Adam

4. A defense of the doctrine of original sin: “My fate is affected by others"“

• Everyone agrees with this principle when it works in our favor

• Everyone agrees with this principle in situations where we must often be represented by others

• It makes sense that the same principle applies in spiritual matters

5. Death through Adam, life through Christ

6. One final thought

Benediction

May the God of life who raised our Lord Jesus raise you on that great day because you believe in His Son. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Amen. — paraphrased from Romans 8:11

The Fall of the House of Jeroboam: Nadab and Baasha

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 15:25-16:7
March 24, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Nadab’s evil reign

• His sins

• His assassination

2. Baasha’s usurpation

• Background

• God’s summary of Baasha’s reign

• Same idolatry, same judgment

3. A doctrine we are familiar with

4. A doctrine we may be unfamiliar with... and find puzzling

• God predicts Baasha will destroy Jeroboam’s dynasty

• God will punish Baasha for doing this

• God’s sovereignty over sin.

  • God is too holy to sin (Habakkuk 1:13)

  • God is too holy to cause anyone else to sin (James 1:13-14)

  • God controls every sin to ultimately further his own righteous purposes

  • God will bring sinners into judgment

5. God’s sovereignty in Christ’s crucifixion

Jeroboam's Dying Son and Dying Kingdom

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 14:1-20
March 17, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Sorrow in Tirzah

• Jeroboam’s son is gravely ill

• Jeroboam sends his wife to inquire of Ahijah the prophet

• Jeroboam’s message travels ahead of his wife

• Ahijah’s message looks backward

• Ahijah’s message looks forward

2. God wants us to feel the loss that comes from rejecting him

• We learn Abijah’s name

• The story grows gradually darker

• Tragedy is told through the sad experience of the mother

• A short summary of Jeroboam’s life

• The point

3. This tragedy exposes the horrible nature of sin

• Sin = ingratitude for mercies God has shown

• Sin = attempting to manipulate God

• Sin = Thrusting God behind one’s back

• Result

4. God’s mercy in a message of judgment

• Mercy to David

• Mercy to Abijah

• Mercy to readers of 1 Kings

Young Prophet, Old Prophet

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 13:1-34
March 10, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. The young prophet denounces Jeroboam

• The grand opening for Jeroboam’s religion

• A voice from the crowd

• A supernatural sign

• Jeroboam’s response

• Jeroboam’s chastening

2. The young prophet meets the old prophet

• The sons’ report

• The old prophet’s deception

• The young prophet’s punishment

3. Questions the writer deems unimportant

4. Theme of the passage

• What does matter to the writer?

• Jeroboam and the Word of the Lord

• The young prophet and the Word of the Lord

• The old prophet and the Word of the Lord

Learning to Distrust Ourselves

Download MP3
Speaker: Rich Goswiller
Scripture: Luke 22:28-34
March 3, 2024

Luke 22:28-34: “You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Peter said to him, “Lord, I am willing to go with you both to prison and to death.” Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.”

Sermon Outline

1. The setting for the evening

2. The first declaration of Jesus

• “Satan has demanded”

• “To have you”

• “To sift you like wheat”

3. The second declaration of Jesus

• “I have prayed for you”

• “When you have turned again...”

4. Peter’s declaration and Jesus’ prediction

• Peter’s misplaced confidence

• Our misplaced confidence

5. What shall we say to these things?

• There is potential for serious lapse and/or declension

• We have an all-sufficient savior

• Always be wary of deadly self-deception

Benediction

Jude 24: Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time, and now and forever. Amen.

Baptized in Fire and Spirit

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: Luke 3:16-18
February 25, 2024

Luke 3:16-18: The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Christ. John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” And with many other words John exhorted the people and preached the good news to them.

Sermon Outline

1. The voice in the desert

2. Why people came

• Many felt spiritual need

• Fear of death

• Others came for lesser reasons

3. “I baptize you with water”

• A Ritual cleansing

• An illustration of a greater person than John

4. “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit”

• What John means by “baptize”

• Holy Spirit at creation

• Holy Spirit helps people over what threatens them

• Holy Spirit purifies people’s very souls

• John proclaims people will gain the Holy Spirit through the Messiah

5. “He will baptize you with fire”

• Terrible judgment/consequences for sins

• John exhorts, “Repent!”

• To those who repent, the fire of judgment was endured by Jesus Christ

• Thus, Messiah’s offer of baptism is good news

6. Final applications

True Spirituality and Spiritual Fruit

Download MP3
Speaker: Dave Royes
Scripture: Mark 11:11-25
February 18, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. A parable of empty religion

• A lens for what Jesus is about to do

• How false religion works

2. An explanation of authentic spirituality

• Genuine belief in God’s power

• Dependence on God in prayer

• The forgiveness of your Father in heaven

3. Hope for true change

• Christ was sacrificed for our sins

King Jeroboam's Rival Religion

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 12:25-33
February 11, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. How Jeroboam strengthened his new country

• He strengthened two key cities

• He revamped worship in Israel

2. How Jeroboam founded a new religion

• How they would worship

• Where they would worship

• Who would lead them in worship

• When they would worship

• Why do these things matter?

3. Today’s false religion

• “Spiritual but not religious”

• Progressive Christianity

• All the above is self-invented religion

Israel is Split (Jeroboam's Revolt)

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 11:26-40, 12:1-24
February 4, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim

• Ephraim’s early promise

• Tensions with other tribes

• Crown given to David of the tribe of Judah

• Jeroboam put over labor force of Ephraim and Manasseh

2. Ahijah’s Prophecy to Jeroboam

3. Result of the Prophecy

• Jeroboam revolts, fails, and flees

• The prophecy is fulfilled

4. Lessons

• Your spiritual condition affects those around you and those who come after you

• God is sovereign over national calamities

• God’s determination to save his people can never be stopped

Our Unity is His Priority

Download MP3
Speaker: Matt Carter
Scripture: John 17:20-23
January 28, 2024

John 17:20-23: “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Sermon Outline

1. Who is Jesus praying for?

• Jesus is praying for those who will believe

• What did Jesus want for us?

2. In what sense is Jesus in the Father, and vice versa?

• The Word was with God and the Word was God

• The Father was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Christ

3. Why does Jesus pray so fervently about our unity in him?

• Unity in such a diverse group of people testifies that Jesus is in our midst

• Unity in the midst of diversity is messy and costly

Benediction

May you be found hidden in Christ and in God the Father by the power of the Holy Spirit living in you. And may the unity that comes from having been hidden there well up in expressions of love for God and for the diverse body of believers around you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. — paraphrased from Colossians 3:3 & John 17:20-23

God Builds David a House

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 11:9-13 & 2 Samuel 7:1-17
January 21, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Human reason can lead godly leaders down the wrong path

2. God is surprisingly humble

• God has gladly gone without a temple for a long time

• In this sense, God is not like other “gods”

3. God is kind and full of grace

• He reminds David of his past grace and kindness

• He promises David future grace and kindness

• He promises David a dynasty

• Why is God kind to David and his dynasty?

4. God promises that David’s dynasty will be unending

• Death will not annul this promise

• Sin cannot destroy the promise

• Time will not exhaust the promise

Solomon’s Fall, God’s Verdict

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 11:1-43
January 14, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Introducing Solomon’s sin

• His drift into idolatry

• Young Solomon wouldn’t have dreamed of following other gods

• How he started with other gods

2. God became angry with Solomon

3. God’s discipline of Solomon

• Discipline via Hadad of Edom

• Discipline via Rezon of Aram

• Discipline via Jeroboam

4. Lessons

• Drifting is deceitful because it happens gradually

• Drifting has a domino effect

• It matters who we are close to

• Where there is repentance, mercy trumps sin and discipline

Benediction

Jude 24-25: To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy — to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

Solomon's Golden Reign

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 3-10 & Revelation 5:12
January 7, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Solomon as a ruler of power and strength

2. Solomon as a ruler of wisdom

• God appears to him at Gibeon

• The two prostitutes

• Wisdom in literature and natural sciences

3. Solomon as a ruler of wealth

• Refinery at the Gulf of Aqaba

• Overland trade routes

• Sea-going trade

• Result

4. Solomon as worthy

5. Solomon as a ruler of honor, glory, and praise

Stewardship Failure and the Gospel

Download MP3
Speaker: Wendell Stoltzfus
Scripture: Malachi 3:6-12
December 31, 2023

Malachi 3:6-12: “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, ‘How shall we return?’ Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.

Sermon Outline

1. Introduction

2. Robbing God

• Admonition

• Extortion

• Condemnation

3. Returning to God

• Exhortation

• Declaration

• Protection

• Reputation

4. Practical applications

Christ's Poverty, Our Wealth

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 8:9
December 24, 2023

2 Corinthians 8:9: For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

Sermon Outline

1. Jesus Christ was rich

• Rich in possessions

• Rich in the ability to create yet more

• Rich in honor

• Rich in love

2. Jesus Christ became poor

• Born into poverty

• Lived as a human

• Had no place to lay his head

• Endured frustration and sorrow

3. The result of Christ’s poverty is our wealth in heaven

• You’re rich in possessions

4. Applications

• For non-Christians

• For Christians

Faith Rewarded Tomorrow

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: Hebrews 11:35-40
December 17, 2023

Hebrews 11:35-40, NIV: Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated — the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.

These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

Hebrews 11:35-40, ESV: Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated — of whom the world was not worthy — wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.

And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

Sermon Outline

1. True faith may seem unrewarded in this life

• Being confined

• Loss of home or comfort

• Physical pain

• A painful death

• Emotional pain

2. God commends his faithful by contrasting them with the world

• What God condemns

• What God loves

3. God’s great plan for those with faith

• Verse 40 is speaking of Old Testament believers after death

• Verse 40 is also speaking of all believers on the world’s final day

Benediction

Romans 15:13: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Full Extent of His Love (and Brick Lane’s Vision for 2024)

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: John 13:1-2
December 10, 2023

John 13:1-2, NIV: It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. The evening meal was being served , and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.

Sermon Outline

1. Jesus washes his disciples’ feet

• Jesus had already loved them 1,000 ways

• Now He shows them the full extent of his love

2. Jesus enables us to love him and other people without exhaustion

3. Brick Lane goals for 2024

• Ministries

  • Public worship

  • Internal ministries

  • Expand local outreach

  • International outreach

• What these ministries need

  • A building

  • Staff

  • Finances

  • Prayer

Faith Rewarded in This Life

Download MP3
Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: Hebrews 11:32-35
December 3, 2023

Hebrews 11:32-35: And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again.

Sermon Outline

1. Our author’s approach in chapter 11

2. A general and a judge

• Barak

• Samson

3. Four famous faithful foreigners

• Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego

• Daniel

4. Two anonymous women

• The Zarephath widow

• The Shunammite woman

• Summary

5. Some principles

• Many times, God rewards our faith in this life

• God rewards our faith even in times of national decline

• God rewards the faith of people whose faith has faltered

Benediction

May God give you grace to persevere in faith, so when you’ve done the will of God you’ll receive what He has promised. — paraphrased from Hebrews 10:36