Jewel Lake Parish Sermon Podcast

The church year begins with Advent, the season when we prepare ourselves to welcome Christ when he returns. But it's been 2000 years! How can we take the idea of his return seriously? And what should we do while we wait? Pastor Luke preaches from Revelation 1:4-8 NLT in "Alpha and Omega – The Coming Light, Part 1," the first message in a new series, "The Coming Light."

If God is all-powerful and loving, why is there so much suffering in the world? This final question in our series of challenging questions gets at the very root of belief. What does Christianity say about evil in the world? Pastor Luke looks at Matthew 13:24-30 NLT in "Evil – Questions, Part 5," the concluding message in his series, "Questions."

How can anyone worship a tyrannical, bloodthirsty god like the one depicted in the pages of the Old Testament? The Bible contains so much of beauty and wonder, but there are troubling passages as well. Some people say they cannot believe a good God would be responsible for such violence. How can believers answer this question? Pastor Luke preaches from 1 Samuel 15: 7-15 NLT in "Wrath – Questions, Part 4," part 4 of his 5-part series, "Questions."

Why is faith a virtue? Shouldn’t people wait for evidence? If God rewards belief, doesn't that just make people gullible? What's wrong with demanding proof? How should followers of Jesus respond to questions like these? Pastor Luke teaches from Luke 15:11-32 NLT in "Faith – Questions, Part 3," part 3 of his 5-part series, "Questions."

Why do Christians think they have a monopoly on truth? If you're a Christian, that question might make you wonder, but plenty of non-Christians are asking it today. A related question asks, Aren't all religions basically the same? How are these questions related, and how can followers of Jesus answer them in way that's helpful? Pastor Luke looks at John 1:14-18 NLT in "Truth Claims – Questions, Part 2," part 2 of his 5-part series, "Questions."

If you have to believe in Jesus to go to heaven, what happens to virtuous people in places and times who never heard about Jesus? We're in a series looking at how our faith answers hard questions. In our survey, this question received the most requests from people hoping to hear an answer. Pastor Luke looks at Luke 13:22-30 NLT in "The Virtuous Heathen – Questions, Part 1," the first message in a new series, "Questions."

New Creation is the idea that God will eventually restore Creation to achieve his original purpose for it. But when? For some people, "eventually" seems like it's too soon, but for others it can't come soon enough. So when will these things take place? Pastor Luke looks at Revelation 21:9-27 NLT in "New Covenant – Roadmap, Part 5," the concluding message in his series, "Roadmap."

We've seen how Jesus makes his Kingdom available to his followers. But do we qualify? What are the rules to get in, and to stay in? What, in other words, is the basis for relationships with Jesus? Pastor Luke teaches from Hebrews 8: 6-13 NLT in "New Covenant – Roadmap, Part 4," part 4 of his 5-part series, "Roadmap."

In the most recent "EXTREME Preaching" occasion, we covered three subjects\: (1) What does it mean in Joshua 5 for someone to be on the Lord's side? (2) What does it mean for God to be a "rock" and a "shield" in Psalm 18? (3) What should we make of bracketed passages in New Testament writings like in John 8 and Mark 16? Pastor Luke teaches from Joshua 5:13-15 in "EXTREME Preaching."

God has covenanted to restore creation to its original goodness. How would you answer, if God asked you for advice about how to proceed? What would be your first step? What kind of supernatural assistance would you need? Pastor Luke teaches from John 19: 12-22 NLT in "King – Roadmap, Part 3," part 3 of his 5-part series, "Roadmap."

We've seen that something has gone wrong with the good world that God made. What is God's response? To walk away? To start over? Or is God able to fix it? If he does, what happens to us? Pastor Luke looks at Deuteronomy 10:12-21 NLT in "Covenant – Roadmap, Part 2," part 2 of his 5-part series, "Roadmap."

Every journey begins somewhere. Our journey begins at the beginning, with creation. We believe that God made everything that is available to our senses — even the sense of time. What does this starting point tell us about our journey? Pastor Luke preaches from Job 38:1-40:2 NLT in "Creation – Roadmap, Part 1," the first message in a new series, "Roadmap."

How should Christians approach work? Is it something we do to pay the bills, or something else? What if we don't like work? Pastor Luke preaches a special Labor Day message from Colossians 3 in "Hi-ho, Hi-ho." Pastor Luke preaches from Colossians 3:22-4:1 NLT in "Hi-ho, Hi-ho - Labor Day."

If you've ever felt that you were in the presence of God, you might have wondered why we don't feel that way all the time. Maybe you've even felt God's absence. What can help us process the sense that God isn't present? Pastor Luke teaches from Acts 18:1-18 NLT in "Breather — Greetings from Greece, Part 4," the concluding message in his series, "Greetings from Greece."

When the Apostle Paul found himself in Athens with time to kill, he did what anyone would do: he took in the sights. Some of what he saw disturbed him. What bothered him so much? How did he respond to it? Does it teach us anything about how we can live in a culture that can be troubling? Pastor Luke looks at Acts 17:16-34 NLT in "Your Own Poets — Greetings from Greece, Part 3," part 3 of his 4-part series, "Greetings from Greece."

After a brief stay in Philippi, the Apostle Paul traveled to Thessalonica, where he faced new opposition -- and this time, they weren't satisfied when he left town. This conflict from about 50 AD has parallels in our super-polarized society today. What was the problem, and what can we learn from it? Pastor Luke looks at Acts 17:1-15 NLT in "Three Weeks and a Day — Greetings from Greece, Part 2," part 2 of his 4-part series, "Greetings from Greece."

Paul's second missionary journey is studied by historians because it shows how the Church first came to Europe. But for people of faith, it answers important theological questions. When we study Paul's visit to a Greek town called Philippi, we learn who the Gospel is for. Pastor Luke preaches from Acts 16:11-40 NLT in "Greetings from Greece, Part 1: Philippi," the first message in a new series, "Greetings from Greece."

In the most recent "EXTREME Preaching" occasion, we covered two subjects\: (1) in Genesis 1, the first humans were given a diet of vegetables. After the Flood, however, in Genesis 9, their diet now includes animals. What can we infer from this? (2) What should be the role of women in the church? Pastor Luke looks at 1 Timothy 2: 8-15 in "EXTREME Preaching."

Jesus concludes his Sermon on the Mount with a promise, but it's not what we might expect. He doesn't promise that everything will go well for his followers -- their circumstances are likely to be the same as those of anyone else. So what does he promise? And is it something we still want today? Pastor Luke teaches from Matthew 7:24-29 NLT in "Home-Building — In Conclusion, Part 5," the concluding message in his series, "In Conclusion...."

When Jesus talks about judgment day, it makes us uncomfortable. He says that people will point to their good deeds--even miracles! --and he will tell them to go away. What is the relationship between good works and salvation? Are Christians required to achieve a certain level of good behavior to be saved? If so, what is it? If not, what is Jesus talking about? Pastor Luke teaches from Matthew 7:21-23 NLT in "It's Not About Fruit — In Conclusion, Part 4," part 4 of his 5-part series, "In Conclusion...."