Life Bridge Sermons Podcast

ACTS || Holding Nothing Back ||

The story of Ananias and Sapphira is a cautionary tale that is shocking to read in the book of Acts. In many ways it servers as a litmus test about how we view sin. This whole incident clearly displays that even though we are under grace because of Jesus, God's character, holiness, and hatred of sin has not changed. It's simply not worth it to hold back from the Lord. His holiness makes it unwise, but His grace, kindness, and love make it unnecessary. God invites us into the glorious joy of an unhidden life with Him.

JOB - || Treasure in Times of Testing ||

Trials and suffering are a reality we should expect. God allows us toexperience them as Christians because there is actually a spiritual benefit from going through hard things. In fact, the conclusion to Job's story shows us that there are treasures that can be discovered during our trials that we could never experience the same way otherwise! In this conclusion to our study in the book of Job, we'll identify four treasures that we can discover in Christ during times of testing.

EASTER SUNDAY - || God's Salvation, Our Solution ||

Fear isn't usually a word we think a lot about on Easter, but it's an important part of the Gospel telling of Jesus' resurrection. The Gospel of Mark in particular describes Resurrection Sunday as a morning filled with confusion, mystery, and fear. The news of the resurrection was initially a fearful experience for Jesus' followers. Yet, through their encounter with Jesus after He was raised, they were led from fear to freedom. Jesus calls all of us to walk this journey and to see that God's salvation is the solution to our fears.

PALM SUNDAY - || God's Glory ||

The GLORY of Jesus is displayed in His COMPASSION for broken sinners, desperate for His grace!

JOB - || Wisdom from the Whirlwind ||

It's common for people to say they believe in God. In fact, 64% of Americans are self-proclaimed Christians. Yet only a fraction of those 64% are actually PRACTICING their faith. There's a big different between believing God and submitting to Him as our Lord. That brings us to an important question: do we respect the wisdom of God enough to obey Him? In this week's passage, Job finally gets his day in court. All along he has maintained that God has not done what was right; he questions God's sovereign wisdom. In response, God responds by demonstrating why He and He alone can be trusted with not only the universe, but with our lives and our obedience.

JOB - || The Foolishness of Graceless Religion ||

Much of the study of Job focuses on how to suffer well. The thinking is logical; inevitably, we will experience hardships that we can relate to the experience of Job in our own lives. It’s also equally true that as we go about our lives we will encounter others who suffer as well. How do we respond to them? What does it look like to love and care for them well? We can get some example of what NOT to do by reading the speeches of Elihu. His foolish, graceless responses are striking and cold. Thankfully, Jesus shows us that God is not cold and uncaring toward the cries of hurting people. We can respond with grace and compassion for those whosuffer because that is what Jesus has done for us!

JOB - || Mining for Wisdom ||

In a world full of choice, where do we go for wisdom when things arecomplicated? This week's text from the book of Job is a poignant reflection on suffering in which Job explores the nature of wisdom, likening it to the search for precious metals buried deep in the earth. He asks a question all of us need to consider: "where can true wisdom can be found?" Ultimately, Job confronts the limitations of our human understanding and realizes that true wisdom can't come from inside the world, it must come from God Himself. As a result, we must look to Christ as the embodiment of God's wisdom and turn toward God to gain true understanding.

JOB - || Christ's Heart for Suffering Sinners ||

In difficult seasons of life, we can easily get turned around. We don't think rationally and sometimes we lose sight of things we ordinarily know to be true. Suffering can cause us to question God's ways and even Hisheart for us. How do we find a way to stay steady when the waves of life push us adrift? In this chapter of Job, we'll learn about how a solid foundation of the truth keeps us anchored in Christ.

JOB - || When the Clouds Roll In ||

Emotional suffering (or as the Bible might call it: "affliction") is a condition that we all experience to one degree or another. Job certainly did. Tragedy was his first challenge. Next were the waves of grief, anger, depression,and anxiety that followed. As we read chapter 3, we may be able to relate to these feelings. What do we do when we experience emotional affliction of one form or another? The Scriptures give us two encouragements we can reflect on and relish. First, that in Christ we are victors, not victims. Second, that in Christ we have a savior we can look to for the hope we need.

JOB - || When the Lord Takes Away ||

Suffering is not an optional feature in this life. It happens to all of us to some extent or another. How does the Bible teach us to make sense of the pain we experience? This week, we will begin a short series in the book of Job, examining how it teaches us not only about the nature of suffering, but about the one who guides us toward hope in the midst of it. We'll examine how this ancient Hebrew story points us to Jesus, the righteous and innocent one who suffered for us!