Sermons

Bible Text: Numbers 6:22-27 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels | This week, we’ll begin a new series based on the book of Numbers. At that point of the Bible, God’s people are in the middle of a long journey of becoming God’s people. That is, they already are, but they’re still growing into those pants. Throughout the book, one of the main issues is whether the Israelites will trust God. If they do, they’ll be able to find their way safely. But how will they know they can trust God? Especially when there’s no water and food seems short? Are you sure you can trust God, for that matter?

Bible Text: Galatians 3:14, 23-4:7 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels | Coming of age stories have a way of capturing our attention and emotion. “To Kill a Mockingbird.” “The Lion King.” The Harry Potter series. Maybe that’s because growing up is something we all have to do. Or maybe it’s because such stories tell us of characters that have a destiny and a purpose, which are things we wish we could feel. But by grace, we have been chosen to be sons and daughters of God, and we do have a destiny: to grow up into God’s inheritance. Are you becoming who God has always meant you to be?

Bible Text: Luke 10:1-12 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels | Outreach is always risky. If we go around putting Jesus on display, we might have to risk our safety, our usual rhythms of life, and failure. It never feels very good to wonder if you botched someone else’s salvation. So if we’re going to be obedient to Jesus command to tell more people about Him, how are we going to deal with the risks that have us holding back? We won’t, unless we recover the reason that we thought we should be spreading Jesus around in the first place. We have to know we’re sent.

Bible Text: Judges 6:1-16 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels Discipleship, becoming more like Jesus, is hard because life’s troubles distract us, our outright sins divert us, and our struggle with trusting God confounds us. So it was for God’s people back in the book of Judges. In chapter 6, God appears to a young and insignificant wimp and has the audacity to tell him to confront the armies of the enemy: “Go in the strength you have.” What strength is that?

Bible Text: Revelation 7 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels Starting this week, I’ll be reviewing three key things New Hope is about: outreach, discipleship, and multi-ethnic ministry. Revelation 7 paints a picture of heaven and one that promises God’s protection, praise, and something crucial about His people: God’s people will be an all-nations people. Why not start now? If we do, we can get an early experience of heaven. How far is heaven? Very close, if we come together in praise of Jesus.

Bible Text: Genesis 44 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels Every family has “skeletons in the closet.” The secrets that the one aunt keeps, the painful loss that no one talks about, the crime, the rejection, the abuse. Sometimes we pray for God to just fix the problem, since, you know, He easily could. But God is interested in doing deeper things in us and in our families, things like redemption. For that, God takes the time we humans need, and His grace is at work for the long-term. Just look at Jacob’s family and the story of Joseph

Bible Text: Genesis 29:16 - 30:11) | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels | Series: Family Dynamics There are so many family sins. Today’s Bible story just puts a couple more on display: rivalry and favoritism. Sibling rivalry seems so natural in a world where nearly every family experiences it, but remember than the world is fallen and that everything is touched by sin. And sin needs God’s grace more than anything we can do. That’s why God is faithful and involved with this ancient biblical family. That’s why God is faithful and involved in yours, too. (Genesis 29:16 - 30:11)

Bible Text: Genesis 4:8-24 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels Social scientist Michael McCullough believes that revenge is hard-wired in our brains because brain scans show our reward centers are activated when we get revenge and the other person “gets what they deserve.” And which of us hasn’t felt that satisfaction when justice is done – but is it justice or revenge? And what does God do in this world of cyclic violence? We’ll start with Cain and go from there.

Bible Text: Genesis 3:8-19 and 4:1-12 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels | Series: Families This is the first in a summer series about families – both the overall human family and our own immediate families. Sin has a lot of ways to twist us up into broken relationships, one of which is to play the “blame game.” But when we do, we avoid our own responsibilities, and miss living up to what we’re meant to be. But God knows, and that’s why He calls to repentance – so He can restore us to our created destiny.

Bible Text: Jeremiah 9:7-24 | Preacher: Pastor Daniel Roels Inside and outside of the church, there has developed an allergy to judgment and talk about God’s dealings with recalcitrant sin and sinners. We want nice things to be the rule, and hope or even believe people are basically good enough. But judgment is the same thing as justice, and a loving God must do justice to be who He is. If you know Him, you can trust that judgment will be revealed as right.