Isaiah 9:6 For Unto Us a Child Is Born- Pastor Michael Carr
We all know this regularly quoted ‘Christmas text.’ Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given: And the government shall be upon his shoulder: And his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. But sometimes that familiarity causes us to take the text […]
Matthew 9:32-34 Men With Good Eyes Who Could Not See
Matthew 9:27-31 Blind Men Who See So Clearly
God’s grace is amazing! Consider the story of the two blind men who Jesus healed in Matthew 9. Before Jesus healed their blindness, God had already opened their eyes to a profound truth. Two poor, destitute, blind men understood what the prominent, rich, healthy Scribes, Pharisees, & teachers of the law had missed; Jesus was […]
Matthew 28:19-20 Baptism as a Means of Discipleship Part 1: Jesus as Prophet
Mt 28:19-20 Go therefore & make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father & the Son & the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you. These verses contain only one command; Make disciples. Going, baptizing, & teaching are all participles which indicate that they […]
Matthew 8:2-17 Those Whom the Suffering Servant Came to Save
Often people fixate on miraculous healings in Matthew 8 and miss the real point of the text. Listen as Pastor Matt explains that the main point of this text is how Jesus heals the lowly despised outcasts and leaves the self righteous in their sins, and is revealed as the prophesied Suffering Servant from Isaiah […]
Matthew 3:1-7 The Herald of the King- The Ministry of John the Baptist
In olden times a person known as a herald would precede the arrival of a king, to announce his coming, & to prepare for his safe & proper travel. A herald had two jobs; to proclaim & to prepare. The O.T. informs us that God Himself would prepare such a herald who would announce the […]
Matthew 2:19-23 He Shall Be Called a Nazarene
Matthew 2:23 is a puzzling text; “(Joseph, Mary and Jesus) came & lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene.” Why is that puzzling? The city of Nazareth is not mentioned in the Old Testament; not even once, more less multiple times as […]
Matthew 2:1-13 The Right Place, at the Right Time, for the Right Reason
You probably think you know the story of the wise men coming to see baby Jesus, but do you really? There are so many unanswered questions. Why would some men from the East see a star and think, ‘We need to head toward Jerusalem, a king has been born?’ Why did the Jews themselves fail […]
Matthew 1:18-25- Setting the Stage- The Scene, the Scandal, the Surrogate, and the Savior
This title of this sermon; ‘Setting the Stage,’ sounds like it’s describing some sort of movie or play. It’s not. This ‘stage’ is the outworking of a Script, but not the script of a fictional tale. This stage is set in real space & real time by the ultimate Script Writer: God Himself. This story […]
