The Book of Judges

We are beginning a new sermon series looking at the Book of Judges. I’ve never done a sermon series on the Book of Judges and I’m guessing you’ve never heard a series on the Book of Judges so this should be interesting. But I am excited to preach it because, as I have been reading it, I find it to be completely relevant and applicable to our lives today. You see, even though 1000’s of years have passed, humanity hasn’t changed much at all. We are still a people that struggles with the same cycles of sin that Israel struggled with in the time of the Judges.

When God called Israel to be his people he called them to be different…to stand out…to be a beacon on a hill. And that worked for a little while.

 

But gradually Israel started looking around and didn’t like being different. They wanted to look like all the other countries and do the same things the other countries did, all while trying to hold on to God as well.

 

And the message was simple…forsake the world and follow me alone…and we have been locked in that battle since then.

 

Will we embrace Christ and follow the way of the cross, or will we embrace the gods around us of wealth, power, popularity, etc. and follow the way of the world? I hope you will join us on this journey as we encounter God’s grace applied to our lives through this challenging book of Judges.

-Rev. Matt Mitchell


Just click on the sermon title link to listen, and on the scripture link to go to Biblegateway.com to read the appropriate passage.

Date	Sermon Link	Scripture Passage
1/12/2014	Introduction to Book of Judges
1/19/2014	Half-Hearted Discipleship	Judges 1:1-2:5
1/26/2014	Walking Among the Idols	Judges 2:6-23
2/9/2014	To Lead or Not to Lead	Judges 4
2/16/2014	Rescued for Repentance	Judges 6
2/23/2014	An Unlikely Hero	Judges 6:11-16
3/2/2014	A Crash Course in Humility	Judges 7
3/9/2014	The Reality of Leadership	Judges 8
4/27/2014	From Bad to Worse	Judges 9
5/4/2014	Jepthah Pt. 1 - "God's Sovreignty at Work"	Judges 10-11
5/11/2014	Jepthah Pt. 2 - "Human Responsibility"	Judges 11-12
5/25/2014	Samson Part 1	Judges 13
6/1/2014	Samson Part 2	Judges 14-15
6/8/2014	Samson & Delilah	Judges 16
6/29/2014	Why We Need Strong Leaders	Judges 17
7/20/2014	The Danger of an Easy Faith	Judges 18
7/27/2014	A People Without a King	Judges 19
8/3/2014	We Need a King, Part 1	Judges 20
8/10/2014	We Need a King, Part 2	Judges 21

2014 Lenten Series: Who Do You Say That I Am?

DATE	SERMON TITLE	SCRIPTURE
03/16/2014	Jesus is the Word of God	John 1:1-5; 9-14
03/23/2014	Jesus is the Son of God	Matthew 26:59-66
03/30/2014	Jesus is the Cornerstone	1 Peter 2:4-11
04/06/2014	Jesus is the Light of the World	John 8:12; 3:16-21
04/13/2014	Jesus is Lord	Luke 9
04/20/2014	Jesus is Messiah	John 21:1-19

The Good Shepherd

Elder Mark Edwards served as guest speaker on Sunday, January 5, 2014 as Rev. Matt Mitchell traveled with FPC's Haiti Mission Team. The message was based on John 9:35-10:21.

To listen to this message, please click on the following link:
We Have The Good Shepherd

John 9:35-10:21

New International Version (NIV)

Spiritual Blindness

³⁵ Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
³⁶ “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
³⁷ Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
³⁸ Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
³⁹ Jesus said,^[a] “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”
⁴⁰ Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?”
⁴¹ Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.

The Good Shepherd and His Sheep

10 “Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. ² The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. ⁵ But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” ⁶ Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

⁷ Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. ⁸ All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. ⁹ I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.^[b] They will come in and go out, and find pasture. ¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
¹¹ “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ¹² The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. ¹³ The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
¹⁴ “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— ¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶ I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. ¹⁷ The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. ¹⁸ No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”
¹⁹ The Jews who heard these words were again divided. ²⁰ Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?”
²¹ But others said, “These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Footnotes:

1. John 9:39 Some early manuscripts do not have Then the man said … ³⁹ Jesus said.
2. John 10:9 Or kept safe

Advent 2013

DATE	SERMON TITLE	SCRIPTURE
11/24/2013	The King of ALL Kings	Psalms 24:8-10
		Colossians 1:15-20
12/1/2013	The Miracle of the Moment	Galatians 4:1-8
12/8/2013	The Miracle of the Message	Hebrews 1:1-3
12/15/2013	The Miracle of the Mother	Luke 1:26-56

Generous: Stewardship 2013

Generous…what a simple and splendid word. From the moment God breathed life into his creation we have been the recipients of His generosity. At every turn of our lives we experience his incredible grace and sacrificial love poured out generously to each of us. Throughout the month of October we will be talking about this idea of Generosity. We will begin by looking at God’s Generosity on Display and how incredibly generous God is as he lavishes us with his love. The following weeks will have us looking at Obstacles to Generosity, Living Generously and finally Committing to Generosity as we each make a commitment to live generously throughout the year. I hope that you will be encouraged by these sermons and that you will see more and more God’s Generous love poured out in your life as you seek to be that Generous person He calls us to be as well.

-Rev. Matt Mitchell

DATE	SERMON TITLE	SCRIPTURE
10/6/2013	God's Generosity on Display	Romans 5:6-8
10/13/2013	A Healthy Outlook to Generosity	2 Corinthians 8:1-12
10/20/2013	Obstacles to Generosity
10/27/2013	Keys to Generous Living

Exploring our Mission Statement

The mission statement of First Presbyterian Church says this: We exist to: Glorify God, Make Disciples, and Meet Human Needs. The following 3 sermons will take into account each section of the Mission Statement in the hope that you will be challenged to lived differently as a result. The Lord is doing something great at FPC and we invite you to join with Him as he continues to work in us.

-Rev. Matt Mitchell

DATE	SERMON TITLE	SCRIPTURE
9/8/2013	We Exist to Glorify God	Romans 16:25-27
9/15/2013	We Exist to Make Disciples	Acts 20:17-37
9/22/2013	We Exist to Meet Human Needs	James 2:14-16

JOY Sermon Series 2013

Do you ever find yourself asking, “Where is the JOY that I thought I would always have?”  Or maybe, “I thought that by the time I got to this point in my life I’d have more JOY?

I think many of us find ourselves in that same place.  As things get busier and the economy drags on, as families become more fractured  and relationships become less intimate we need some JOY in our lives.  And it is our firm conviction that if there is to be a revolution of JOY that it will come from the very people that have the root of all JOY living in their hearts – Christians! 

So join us on this journey as we seek to find the giver of all JOY as well the sustainer of that JOY in the person of Jesus Christ.  All of the sermons in this series will look at how our lives, when lived for Christ, will intersect with JOY, regardless of the situation.  I hope that as you listen to these sermons you will be encouraged and challenged to grow stronger in your faith  - because, “the JOY of the Lord is our strength!”

-Rev. Matt Mitchell

DATE	SERMON TITLE	SCRIPTURE
1/6/2013	The Beginning of Joy	Matthew 2:1-2
1/13/2013	JOY in the Journey	Isaiah 30:15-21
1/20/2013	JOY in God's Word	Isaiah 55:9-11
1/27/2013	Joy in Forgiveness	Psalm 130
2/3/2013	Joy in the Church: What the Church Should BE	Matthew 28:1; John 20:21; Acts 2
2/10/2013	Joy in the Church: What the Church Should DO	Acts 1:6-9
2/17/2013	I AM the Light of the World	John 8:12-25
2/24/2013	I AM the True Vine	John 15:1-5
3/3/2013	I AM the Bread of Life	John 6:43-51
3/17/2013	I AM the Gate	John 10:1-10
3/24/2013	I AM the Good Shepherd	John 10:1-5; 11-18
3/31/2013	I AM the Resurrection and the Life	John 11:17-26
4/14/2013	The JOY of Contentment	Philipians 4:10-13
4/21/2013	The JOY of God's Word
4/28/2013	The JOY of God's Family	Galations 3:23-28
5/5/2013	The JOY of God's Grace	Ephesians 2:4-10
5/12/2013	The JOY of a Mother	John 20:20-23
5/19/2013	The JOY of God's Grace	Luke 10:30-37
5/26/2013	The Original Memorial Day	Joshua 4
6/2/2013	The JOY of Community	Philipians 1:1-11
6/9/2013	The JOY of Perspective	Philipians 1:12-18
6/16/2013	The JOY of Fatherhood	Genesis 12:1-9
6/30/2013	A JOY in Christ that Overflows	Philipians 1:18-26
7/7/2013	The JOY of Unity (Again!)	Philipians 1:27-30
7/14/2013	JOY in Missions: Radical Acts of Trust	Luke 10:1-17
7/28/2013	JOY in Missions: Here Am I, Send Someone Else!	Exodus 3-4
8/11/2013	JOY in Missions: Turning the World Upside Down	1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
8/18/2013	JOY in Missions: Haiti Sunday	Matthew 9:35-38
8/28/2013	Finding JOY in Unity	Philippians 2:1-4
9/1/2013	Joy in Christ's Work	Philippians 2:5-11
9/29/2013	Paul's Roadmap for the Church	Philippians 2:12-18
11/10/2013	Philipians Series	Philippians 2:19-30
11/17/2013	Paul's Life Goals	Philippians 3:1-11