worship

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Sin effectively distances us from God, pushing us into exile from his kingdom. Jesus is the one who brings us back. Pastor Ryan traces the idea of exile through the entire Old Testament and into our lives.

“Sin Equals Exile”, by Pastor Ryan Emmons

Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14(NLT) ; 但 以 理 書 7:9-14 (CUVS)
Matthew 1:20-23 (NLT) ; 馬 太 福 音 1:20-23 (CUVS)

This sermon is third in the series “Following Jesus“, based on the book by N.T. Wright.

You can set up a real-time transcript when you listen on your device. You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

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Paul wrote “Do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds.” The story of Namaan in the Old Testament book of 1 Kings can help us understand what this means.

“Change Your Thinking”, by Pastor Ryan Emmons

2 Kings 5:1-6 (NLT) ; 列 王 紀 下 5:1-6 (CUVS)
Romans 12:1-3 (NLT) ; 羅 馬 書 12:1-3 (CUVS)

This sermon is first in the series “Following Jesus“, based on the book by N.T. Wright.

You can set up a real-time transcript when you listen on your device. You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

Photo by Fr. Daniel Ciucci on Unsplash

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 Jesus taught by his words and actions that giving to the poor and needy was of top importance. Yet, when Mary poured a whole jar of super-expensive perfume on his feet in a most unseemly display of outlandish love and gratitude, and Judas objected on the grounds that the money could have been given to the poor, Jesus defended her. How are we to understand this seeming contradiction?

“Jesus First”, by Pastor Ryan Emmons

You can set up a real-time transcript when you listen on your device. You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

Photo by Malcolm Lightbody on Unsplash

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God made a promise to Abraham, then to his son Isaac. Then, when Isaac’s son Jacob was running for his life after cheating his brother out of his birthright, God made the same promise to him. What can we learn from Jacob about God’s promise to us, and about what should be our response?

“Giving as Good as You Get”, by Pastor Ryan Emmons

Genesis 28:10-22 (NLT) ; 創 世 記 28:10-22 (CUVS)
Proverbs 3:9-10 (NLT) ; 箴 言 3:9-10 (CUVS)

You can set up a real-time transcript when you listen on your device. You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

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Pastor Ryan is starting his new sermon series on Heroes and Villains of the Bible off with a bang! Jezebel (obviously a villain) was known for many things including leading Israel (via her husband king Ahab) astray to worship Baal. (Note: the recording starts about a minute into the sermon.)

Proverbs 9:13-18 (NLT) ; 箴 言 9:13-18 (CUVS)
Revelation 2:18-29 (NLT) ; 啟 示 錄 2:18-29 (CUVS)

You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

Photo by Joshua Rawson-Harris on Unsplash (with apologies to the real woman depicted in this photo, who is unlikely to be like Jezebel! But she does look like she is planning something…)

Photo by Joshua Rawson-Harris on Unsplash

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Pastor Ryan’s sermon “Prepared to Enter” explores how we should prepare ourselves for worship. What kind of character do we need to have if we want to “dwell in the house of the Lord”, or remain in the presence of the Holy One?

Colossians 1:21-23 (NLT) ; 歌 羅 西 書 1:21-23 (CUVS)
Psalm 15 (NLT) ; 詩 篇 15 (CUVS)

You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

Photo by Joshua Sukoff on Unsplash

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Pastor Ryan’s sermon “Scattered Seed” is based on Jesus’ parable of the sower: some seeds fell on rocky soil, some on thin soil, some among thorns, and so on. Jesus explains what it means, so our job is to figure out where we fit in the parable. It all seems quite straightforward, until you look at the farmer…

Hosea 10:12 (NLT) / 何 西 阿 書 10:12 (CUVS)
Matthew 13:1-9 NLT) / 馬 太 福 音 13:1-9 (CUVS)
Matthew 13:18-23 (NLT) / 馬 太 福 音 13:18-23 (CUVS)

You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript).

Photo by Roman Synkevych on Unsplash

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Pastor Ryan’s sermon “The Jar Paradox” talks about the paradox in the image of believers being “fragile jars of clay”, as well as the paradoxes that follow in Paul’s letter. It doesn’t make sense that the great treasure of the Gospel would be “stored” in relatively fragile containers, and yet that is exactly what God has done in entrusting us not only to experience His love, power and grace for ourselves, but also to be witness of that to the world around us.

Psalm 18:1-6 (NLT) / 詩 篇 18:1-6 (CUVS)
2 Corinthians 4:5-12 (NLT) / 歌 林 多 後 書 4:5-12 (CUVS)

You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript). In this sermon, he talks about the classic children’s book The Velveteen Rabbit. Since it is out of copyright, you can read it online for free if you like.

Photo by Earl Wilcox on Unsplash