Rain, Grace, and Second Chances

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Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 18:41-46
May 26, 2024

1 Kings 18:41-46: And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.” So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.

“Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked. “There is nothing there,” he said. Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.” The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.”

So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’” Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on and Ahab rode off to Jezreel. The power of the LORD came upon Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.

Sermon Outline

1. Ahab and Elijah

2. The text’s first great lessons come by watching Elijah pray

• Prayer in public must be fueled by prayer in private

• Prayer must follow (not just precede) our spiritual accomplishments

• Prayer should major on God’s agenda, not ours

• Prayer should be in earnest

3. The text’s final great lesson comes by watching Elijah run

• Ahab’s ill-desert

• God’s grace

Jehovah Versus Baal on Mount Carmel

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Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 18:1-40
May 19, 2024

Sermon Outline

1. Elijah and Obediah

• Severe famine

• Obediah’s fear and courage

2. Elijah and Ahab

• Ahab blames Elijah

• Elijah issues a challenge

• Why does Ahab agree?

3. The setting and the stakes

• The beautiful setting

• The wavering people

• Application

4. The prophets of Baal call on their god

• Their first attempt

• Their second attempt

5. Elijah calls on his God

• He slowly rebuilds Jehovah’s fallen altar

• He prays to the real God

• God answers with fire

6. Elijah slays the false prophets

Elijah Raises the Widow's Son

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Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 17:17-24
May 12, 2024

Sermon Outline

Part 1: The ways of God are mysterious

1 Kings 17:17-18: Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. She said to Elijah, “What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?”

• Things got worse, not better, for the widow

• Things got worse, not better, for Elijah

• An infinite God can be baffling to finite creatures

Part 2: If God is going to use you, it will cost you

1 Kings 17:19-21: “Give me your son,” Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. Then he cried out to the LORD, “O LORD my God, have you brought tragedy also upon this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?” Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried to the LORD, “O LORD my God, let this boy’s life return to him!”

• Believers move toward others

• Elijah got involved with his body

• Elijah got involved with his prayers

• Ministry to others is being a bridge between God and them

Part 3: The result

1 Kings 17:22-24: The LORD heard Elijah’ cry, and the boy’s life returned to him, and he lived. Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, “Look your son is alive!” Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is the truth.”

• The God who gives life to the dead

• We gain faith, and grasp truth, in stages

• Does this mean we can expect healing?

• Doubting Thomas

Where Are You Hiding?

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Speaker: Dr. Rick Horne
Scripture: Psalm 11
May 5, 2024

Psalm 11: The LORD Is in His Holy Temple

To the choirmaster. Of David.

In the LORD I take refuge; how can you say to my soul, “Flee like a bird to your mountain, for behold, the wicked bend the bow; they have fitted their arrow to the string to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart; if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD’s throne is in heaven, his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man. The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence. Let him rain coals on the wicked; fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. For the LORD is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face.

Sermon Outline

1. David wants to hide

• Why so much attention to hiding?

• David hides when there are threats... he was at war; so are you at war

• Many descriptions of the Christian life have reference to spiritual warfare

2. David finds his safety “in the LORD”

• YHWH — the Redeemer

• Jesus identifies Himself as YHWH

• “Refuge” is for those who are in Christ, not those who just know about him

3. David gets misleading advice

• Their advice was sincere

• Their advice was logical

• Their advice was filled with urgency

• Their advice was contrary to trust in God’s promise

• Who do you look to for your counsel for hiding?

4. David hides by faith — in the secure refuge of God’s provision

• YHWH is secure

• YHWH has a plan and a timetable

• YHWH treats His people with parental love

• This leads to a sobering teaching

Elijah, the Ravens, and the Widow

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Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 17:2-24
April 28, 2024

Sermon Outline

Elijah at the Kerith Ravine

• God tells Elijah to hide

• Hide for Elijah’s safety

• Hide for discipline on King Ahab and Israel

• God’s provision for Elijah

2. Elijah at Zarephath

• The place

• The widow

3. Lessons

• God has His own where we least expect them

• God’s promises can be trusted

The Rise of Ahab and Elijah

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Speaker: Steve Estes
Scripture: 1 Kings 16:29-17:1
April 21, 2024

1 Kings 16:29-17:1: In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years. Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the LORD than any of those before him. He not only considered it trivial to commit the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, but he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him. He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria. Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than did all the kings of Israel before him.

In Ahab’s time, Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, and he set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the LORD spoken by Joshua son of Nun. Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”

Sermon Outline

1. Ahab’s day didn’t seem evil

2. Alliance with Sidon

• King Ethbaal

• Princess Jezebel

• Canaanite religion

• Jezebel’s unholy mission

3. Two brief episodes

• The sons of Hiel at Jericho

• The prophet Elijah at Samaria

4. Lessons

• Sin usually presents itself as “no big deal”

• Sin always progresses

• God is always working even while evil rages

Story of Three Dynasties

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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)

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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

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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

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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

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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.