Pv Sermons

As we continue to celebrate this Advent season, we light the candle of Love. Pastor Sean looks at 1 John 4:7-21 to examine what love actually looks like in the Gospel community.

This week we look at 3 aspects of Joy. Personal Joy through creation; Eternal Joy through faith in Jesus; and Perfected Joy when He returns. In light of this and reflecting on Luke 1:39-56, we need to answer a few questions. Where do you find your Joy? What do you do with your Joy? With whom do you share your Joy?

God made peace available to us through Jesus Christ. Have you accepted His offering of peace? Do we reflect that peace with each other in His gospel community? Are we experiencing His peace through the trials of life?

As we continue through John in the upper room discourse, Jesus shows us once again His humanity as He is troubled in His spirit thinking about the coming events and the one who will betray Him. We can be troubled in our spirit, just like Jesus. Sean looks at how Jesus responds and gives us insights from this interaction into how we can respond like Jesus when we are troubled.

As we continue through the Gospel of John, we begin the upper room discourse that begins with Jesus washing the disciples' feet, showing us how to live in Gospel community, understanding we need one another to stand firm against our adversary, Satan.

Jesus reminds us of the words He spoke earlier in chapter 3. He did not come to judge but to save the lost. What is our attitude and posture towards unbelievers? We should not expect people to obey the word of God when they don't believe in the God of the Word. 

As we look at today's passage, we should ask ourselves where we resemble some of the authorities of Jesus' day. "Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God." John 12:42-43.

As Jesus contemplates the cross, He builds His resolve knowing this is why He came. He finds strength in knowing why He was sent by God and that He can trust wholly in God. We are called to deny ourselves as Christ demonstrated and we can find strength knowing Christ defeated death and we can have the same trust in God.

As we continue through John's gospel, we look at Jesus declaration that His hour has come and what this means for the disciples and how we are to respond the way we follow Him.

Pastor Sean unpacks the triumphal entry in light of God's omniscience. The Jewish folks that were waving palm branches at the beginning of the week might well have been yelling crucify him at the end of the week. Jesus did not meet their expectations in the moment. How often do we miss what God is doing in the moment but in hindsight have a better understanding of what God is doing in our lives.

As we look at todays passage, we see Mary's devotion to Jesus. Pastor Sean unpacks four aspects of her devotion and how when we follow her example we can impact the world around us.

This week we see how the High Priest, Caiaphas, was working to convince the Sanhedrin to put Jesus to death. Through his leadership, we see the sovereignty of God displayed. What Caiaphas and the religious leaders wanted to do (kill Jesus) to bring peace to the Jewish nation (and help them stay in power), God would eventually use to bring atonement for all who would trust in Jesus for salvation!

Jesus continues to show patience as He interacts with Martha concerning Lazarus. He raised Lazarus, not because of her faith, but to bring Glory to God and reveal who He is. We are challenged to follow Jesus' example in ascribing Glory to God in all things; He is worthy!

Pastor Sean looks at the Jewish customs of mourning death to help us see how Jesus relates to us in every situation of our lives. Where do you need to "come and see," Jesus today?

We see an intimate moment shared between Jesus and Martha in this passage. Jesus shows compassion as He listens and responds to Martha seeing her faith move from one of grief to one of belief! Where is our faith? Whatever our doubts or questions, Jesus can handle them!

We continue through The Gospel of John looking at a familiar story in chapter 11:1-16.

Jesus continues to make claims of His equality with God, which upsets the Pharisees, while we see many of the common Jewish people begin to believe. There are some difficult doctrines in the Bible that many theologians disagree on, but we should not divide over these or run from them. We need to look to the scriptures for clarity realizing that the most important truth we need to understand is that we are saved by faith in Jesus, the Messiah!

As we continue through the Gospel of John, we take a closer look at what Jesus provides as the Good Shepherd and how we should respond to Him.

As we finish out chapter 9 of John's gospel, we see Jesus looking for the blind man after he had been kicked out of the temple by the Pharisees. Pastor Sean reminds us that we can never out sin God's grace.

The Pharisees continue to question the blind man who now sees them in a new light, literally and figuratively. Pastor Sean challenges us to have share the gospel with those around us who do not believe and gives practical advice and encouragement on how to do just that.