Wawasee Bible Sermon Audio

Part 11 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Pastor Dave speaks about true friendship according to Proverbs.

Part 10 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Pastor Rick Thompson, Superintendent of the Great Lakes District of the EFCA is our guest this morning. Rick takes us through the different fools of Proverbs, encouraging us to avoid the pitfalls of each in our lives by the Spirit's power.

Part 9 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Pastor Dave looks at multiple Proverbs and asks, "What are you pursuing?

Part 8 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Proverbs has a lot to say about our relationship to others, especially our neighbors, including those we work along side, live alongside, and the communities we live in. God's consistent call on his people is to love our neighbor. Jesus said that next to loving God it's the second greatest command. Pastor Collin Seitz is our guest this week and give us some of the pitfalls Proverbs exhorts us to avoid with our neighbors, while encouraging us to practice being good neighbors according to God's Word. We are sent to love people, especially our neighbors, and invite them to follow Jesus with us!

Part 7 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Proverbs 12:25 tells us, “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.” Intense anxiety can weigh down the heart. It can lead to spiritual depression and psychological depression. Thankfully, God has prescribed a cure for a heavy heart. While anxious thoughts weigh down the heart, encouraging words cheer up the heart — especially the Word of God! We can confront anxious thoughts with God’s inspired promises, with his prophetic word, and prayer. Certainly there are times when the need for professional counseling and care is welcome and essential, but all of Jesus’ followers—professional counselors or not—can use timely, encouraging words and God’s Word to encourage one another and battle anxiety in their own hearts.

Part 6 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Certain formulas are helpful to memorize in life, and one that is essential as we celebrate our freedom as a nation relates to our happiness. God gives us some instruction on how to attain true gladness and happiness in his Word. It begins with finding true freedom in Jesus Christ. After we have this freedom, if we'll live in dependence on God, we'll gain true, abiding hope, gladness, and happiness. Freedom + Dependence (on God!) = Happiness.

Part 5 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Proverbs speaks more about our speech than anything else. More than money, more than sex, more than family and relationships. Proverbs 18:21 reminds us that there is the power of death and life in the tongue. This week we look at the negative power we wield with our words. Illustrating Proverbs 18:21, James gives us three vivid metaphors of how powerful our tongues are in chapter three of his New Testament book. Words have power, so watch what you say—it will reveal your heart. What do your words reveal about your heart?

Part 4a - SERIES: Word to the Wise This year for Father's Day we swapped pastors with our sister church, Community Gospel Church of Bremen, Indiana. Wawasee Bible and Community Gospel share a long history together and both of us are now part of the Evangelical Free Church of America. Pastor Jordan Muck preached at Wawasee Bible and Pastor Josh went over to Community Gospel for the day. This is Pastor Josh's message recorded at Community Gospel. Proverbs 4 is Good Advice from our Good Dad. It records the words of a father to his son, and ultimately it's our Heavenly Father's instruction to us. Above all else he says to get wisdom and insight... do you want wisdom? Then you need to get Jesus and you'll get life. We see Jesus described as wise and associated with the wisdom of Proverbs all throughout the New Testament. We're presented with a choice in Proverbs 4—a choice that will repeat itself millions of times throughout our lives. We can choose death or we can choose life, so pay attention to your heart.

Part 4 - SERIES: Word to the Wise This year for Father's Day we swapped pastors with our sister church, Community Gospel Church of Bremen, Indiana. Wawasee Bible and Community Gospel share a long history together and both of us are now part of the Evangelical Free Church of America. Pastor Jordan Muck preached at Wawasee Bible and Pastor Josh went over to Community Gospel for the day. This is Pastor Jordan's message recorded at Wawasee Bible. Proverbs 4 is a Father's Wise Instruction to his son. Ultimately it's our Heavenly Father's instruction to us. Above all else he says to get wisdom and insight. Not just knowledge and a head full of facts, but wisdom—knowing how to apply those facts to life, and to actually apply them! He goes on to exhort us to flee from wickedness and avoid the way of the wicked, but to choose the paths of the righteous. Above all, guard your heart because life flows from the inside out.

Part 3 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Wisdom is calling out to you, to everyone. Will you answer its call? The Lord's wisdom is personified as "Lady Wisdom" in Proverbs. And when we get to the New Testament we read that in Jesus are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, even that Jesus became the wisdom of God for us—his wisdom with flesh on. Jesus himself even seems to directly associate himself and his wisdom with Lady Wisdom. This week in Proverbs 8 we see a description of wisdom that parallels many descriptions of Jesus in the New Testament. If you want to get trust wisdom, get Jesus and get life.

Part 2 - SERIES: Word to the Wise Wisdom is offered to all of us, but it's not automatic. God's wisdom and the knowledge of the depth of his love for us is part of his grace that's conditional. It's conditional on us searching for him with our whole heart. It's not "search for me and I'll love you more", it's "search for me and you'll know me for all that I am!" The reality is that as believers we're sitting on a gold mine, and if we're willing to do some digging and really get after knowing God, we can know him for all of who he is and gain wisdom. Search hard for wisdom and bury it in your heart so you'll know every good path.

Part 1 - SERIES: Word to the Wise We kick off a new series in the book of Proverbs, where we’re looking for God’s wisdom for life. Pastor Josh gives an intro to the book covering the who, what, and why of Proverbs. Written primarily by Solomon, Proverbs is a collection of short, pithy statements that teach practical wisdom about life. A proverb expresses what is generally/normally true, not universally true. Sometimes there are exceptions. It’s important to remember that a proverb is not a promise. However, most of the time they represent what is true about gaining and living a life of wisdom. Wisdom begins with a right relationship with/to God which is only possible through Jesus!

Part 19 - SERIES: This Exile Life Peter wraps up his first letter exhorting his readers to stand firm in the true grace of God, referring specifically to the things he's written to them. All of God's word is trustworthy and true. This week we take some time to look at some of the evidence that the Bible is true and trustworthy. The Bible is God's true word of his true grace so we can know true peace.

Part 18 - SERIES: This Exile Life Followers of Jesus have an adversary who seeks to destroy them. And we’re especially vulnerable to his attacks during times of suffering or anxiety. So Peter tells us to stay alert in the midst of our weakness and resist the enemy. To stand firm in our faith. That only happens as we stay close to Jesus and close to other Christians. Stay alert in your weakness and close to Jesus. In your suffering remember you’re not alone and it’s not forever.

Part 17 - SERIES: This Exile Life Do you struggle with fear, anxiety, and worry? Everyone does to varying degrees. Fear, anxiety, and worry aren't necessarily sinful, Jesus himself struggle with anxiety in the Garden of Gethsemane. The issue at hand is what you do with your fear, anxiety, and worry. Peter gives us good instruction to cast it upon Jesus, knowing he cares for us. Left to themselves our anxieties can be too much to handle and easily get away from us. Instead, we must anchor them to the truth of God's word. Rest under God's care by giving him your anxieties, he loves you.

Part 16 - SERIES: This Exile Life As Peter begins to wind up his letter he addresses the elders who are leading the churches he’s writing to. He exhorts them to shepherd the people under their care and lead them. While Peter’s exhortation is directed at leaders in a church setting, the principles he lays out apply to leadership in any setting. Good leaders think like a shepherd, and any good shepherd will provide for, protect, and guide their sheep. We can see God doing the same with us as our Shepherd in Psalm 23. Good leaders/shepherds also think more about the people they lead than themselves, serving willingly, eagerly, and leading by example in humility. Are you leading anything? Think like a shepherd who loves their sheep and knows they’re a sheep themselves.

Part 15 - SERIES: This Exile Life Once again Peter reminds us that as exiles we can expect to suffer in this life. In fact, he tells us not to be surprised if and when we do suffer—as if it were something strange or out of the ordinary! We live in a world that is broken by our sin and thus suffering is a reality for everyone. As Christians, we can expect not just the suffering of living in a broken world but suffering and persecution due to following Jesus. Peter tells us that this type of suffering (while hard) can be used by God to make us more like Jesus. We can rejoice when we suffer for his sake, knowing that we'll also share in his glory when he returns. When we suffer we can entrust our souls to the care of our faithful God, just like Jesus did when he suffered on the cross. Don't be surprised if you suffer, God is working (and in control!)—you can trust him.

Part 14 - SERIES: This Exile Life 1 Peter often seems to reflect one Peter's many encounters with Jesus. 1 Peter 4:7-11 is no exception where Peter writes about being alert as the end (Jesus' return) draws near. Jesus had told Peter something very similar in Matthew 26 the night before he was crucified. Peter reminds us that Jesus is coming so should be alert and care for each other—praying for each other, loving each other earnestly, showing hospitality to one another, and using our gifts to serve each other. We want to see every person who calls Wawasee Bible home do three things: 1) Gather regularly on Sunday mornings. 2) Grow by getting connected in a growth ministry (don't just show up, grow up!). 3) Go serve somewhere! How are you doing at each of these three things?

Part 13 - SERIES: This Exile Life It's better to suffer for doing good (if it's God's will) than to sin, but we need to get our head on straight and think like Jesus if we want to be able to live for God. But with the Spirit's help and others' help, we can put away our sin and idols. Idols are created in our lives when the good-thing God gives us becomes a god-thing, and that's a deadly thing. As we live for God some will simply not understand us, but thankfully Jesus does. And we should always remember that judgment is coming, but God is extravagantly patient with us, wanting us to turn to him.

Easter Sunday 2021 - Jesus Said What? Jesus made some pretty outlandish claims about himself. Claims that if untrue, leave him to be either a deceptive liar, or an absolute lunatic. Some of his claims include that he was not from earth, the he was perfect and without sin, and over and over that he was God. This Easter we look at these claims at face value, then are left with a choice... is he telling the truth, lying, or crazy? Ultimately that's the question of your lifetime. Who do you say that Jesus Christ is?