God's Gracious Work in People's Lives
the purpose of this blog post is to direct people to the Stone Pillar Podcast episodes in which we learn about God's gracious work in and through His people...
Pressure Points are Pruning Points
helpful questions for Christians going through trials...
You Have Everything!
a midweek thought about the Lord's abundant grace to His people...
God's Commands Show The Way of Love
a midweek thought about how the Ten Commandments teach us the way of love...
Insider or Outsider?
Here is an excerpt from "Who Belongs to Jesus?" This excerpt calls attention to a defining characteristic of those who truly belong to Jesus....
Not Fasting, but Feasting!
An excerpt from the sermon "The Joy of the Gospel: An Exposition of Mark 2:18-22." This excerpt calls attention to the joyous truth that feasting, not fasting, is the fitting response to the Lord's saving presence with us. ...
The Cream of the Gospel
An excerpt from the sermon "Who Can Forgive Your Sins?" This excerpt highlights the truth that the forgiveness of sins is of greater importance than material blessings....
Go Where Jesus Goes
An excerpt from "The Call To Follow Jesus: An Exposition of Mark 1:16-20." This excerpt calls attention to the lesson that following Jesus involves going where He goes....
Good News in the Wilderness
An excerpt from "The Gospel Begins: An Exposition of Mark 1:1-15." This excerpt highlights the significance of Jesus passing the test of temptation in the wilderness....
The Difference Between Wise People and Foolish Ones
An excerpt from "Running The Race Together Part 6...
Providing for Others
An excerpt from "Snapshots of a Healthy Church Part 2: An Exposition of 1 Timothy 5:1-16." This excerpt highlights how the gospel motivates us to provide for others and also how such providing is closely related to our work....
Effective Evangelism
An excerpt from the sermon "Snapshots of a Healthy Church Part 1." This excerpt highlights the evangelistic effectiveness of the early church in Acts 2:41-47....
A Culture of Pursuing Holiness Together
An excerpt from "Running The Race Together Part 5...
The Character of a Good Exhorter
An excerpt from "Running The Race Together Part 2–Key Qualities of a Faithful Exhorter." This excerpt offers a description of the character of a good exhorter....
On Preventing Shipwrecks
An excerpt from "Running The Race Together Part 1." This excerpt focuses on the instruction from Hebrews 3:13 that mutual exhortation is a preventative measure designed to help brothers and sisters avoid catastrophic spiritual failure....
The Main Thing
An excerpt from "Indwelt By The Triune God." This excerpt highlights the key truth that having a close relationship with the Triune God is what Christianity is all about....
Water From Above
An excerpt from "The Spirit of Life: An Exposition of John 7:37-39." This excerpt focuses on the spiritual water that Jesus offers to the spiritually thirsty....
Love God Supremely and Love Your Neighbor Sincerely
An exposition of the tenth commandment....
The Gracious Visitation of God
An excerpt from "Grace in a World of Woe: An Exposition of Psalm 90." This excerpt cals attention to the Lord's compassion for His people....
Have Regard For Your Neighbor's Reputation
A midweek lesson on the ninth commandment....
The City of God
An excerpt from "God Is Our Fortress in the Midst of a Turbulent World." This excerpt focuses on the greatness of the city of God....
Have Regard For Your Neighbor's Property
A midweek lesson on the eighth commandment....
Have Regard For Your Neighbor's Marriage
A midweek lesson on the seventh commandment....
Jesus, Remember Me
An excerpt from the sermon "What True Conversion Looks Like: An Exposition of Luke 23:39-43." This excerpt focuses on the truth that true conversion involves trusting Christ....
Christ's Grace from Start to Finish
An excerpt from the sermon "Abiding in the Benediction." This excerpt highlights the fact that Christ's grace is the basis of Paul's confidence for ongoing fruit in and through the Philippian congregation....
The Sovereignty Over and In The Shadow
An excerpt from the sermon "The Shadow of Death and the Promise of Life." This excerpt focuses on how God's sovereign plan was to achieve salvation through the death of Christ....
The Seeing Before The Greeting
Two excerpts from the sermon "Greeting The Saints: A Practice That Must Not Be Neglected." These excerpts focus on how we must first see our fellow Christians as saints before we can greet them as such. ...
He Was Cut Off So That We Could Be Gathered In
An excerpt from the sermon "The Victory of Christ." This excerpt focuses on the glorious salvation that Christ achieved, through His suffering, for His people....
Eternal Glory Belongs to Our Heavenly Father
An excerpt from the sermon "To Our Great God Belongs Eternal Glory." This excerpt focuses on the wonderful truth that our God, in His fatherly relation to us, is worthy of eternal glory....
The Center and Scope of the Fifth Commandment
A midweek lesson on the fifth of the Ten Commandments....
Our Glorious and Generous Provider
An excerpt from the sermon "Living in the Goodness of God's Provision." This excerpt highlights the wonderful truth that God has invested all of His vast wealth in Christ; and out of this vast wealth in Christ, our heavenly Father meets our needs....
Gospel-Shaped Love is God-Glorifying Worship
An excerpt from the sermon "Three Features of Gospel Partnership." This excerpt highlights the teaching of Philippians 4:18 that showing love to our gospel partners is God-glorifying worship....
Living Well Weekly Part 1
A midweek lesson on the fourth of the Ten Commandments (Part 1 of 2)....
Cling to Jesus in Affliction and in Abundance
An excerpt from the sermon "Living in the Goodness of God's Peace Part 5." This excerpt focuses on how Paul's teaching about contentment in Philippians 4:11-13 applies both to difficult circumstances and to favorable circumstances....
What are you doing with what you have learned?
An excerpt from the sermon "Living in the Goodness of God's Peace Part 4." This excerpt focuses on the importance of practicing what we have learned....
Some Pointers on Faithfully Reading the Old Testament
A midweek lesson about how to faithfully read the Old Testament....
Think About Your Thinking
An excerpt from the sermon "Living in the Goodness of God's Peace Part 3." This excerpt helps us to understand that our thinking is to be integrated with our affections and will as one inward reality....
Joy is Rooted in Faith
An excerpt from the sermon "Living in the Good of God's Peace Part 2." This excerpt helps us to see the relationship between joy and faith....
What Breaks the Power of Our Disagreements
An excerpt from the sermon "Living in the Goodness of God's Peace Part 1." This excerpt focuses on how agreeing on the most important things breaks the power of our disagreement over less important things....
Choose Your Running Partners Well
An excerpt from the sermon "Standing Firm in the Lord...
Highly Relevant to One Another's Growth in Discipleship
An excerpt from the sermon "Standing Firm in the Lord...
The God Who Saves
A midweek lesson about the profound truth that God saves His people....
Downstream from the Cross
An excerpt from the sermon "Living as an Embassy of Love in a Foreign Land." This excerpt points out that Christian love doesn't flow upstream from the behavior of others, but downstream from the cross....
The God Who Keeps Covenant
A midweek lesson that helps us understand that God relates to His people through the covenantal realities that He establishes....
The Christian Perspective
An excerpt from the sermon "The Gospel-Shaped Life: Together in Deep Spiritual Unity." This excerpt summarizes the unified perspectives that Christians share....
The God Who Speaks
A midweek lesson about the profound truth that God speaks to His people....
The Question
An excerpt from the sermon "Are You Resting in the Sovereign King?" This excerpt applies the lessons of Luke 8 to the individual hearer....
The King Who Gives
An excerpt from the sermon "Kingdoms in Conflict." This excerpt highlights the generosity of King Jesus and the gracious salvation that He brings by giving Himself for His people....
The Working Word
A midweek lesson about the powerful working of God's Word in God's people....
A Glimpse of the Beauty of Christ
An excerpt from the sermon "Jesus Grows Into Manhood." This excerpt presents the side-by-side reality of the twelve-year-old Jesus submitting to His heavenly Father and, at the same time, submitting to His earthly parents....
Doxology Is The Point
A midweek lesson on doxology (i.e., praising God) as the point of Christmas. The lesson is drawn from a short tour through Luke 1-2 and Matthew 2....
Quiet Your Protest
An excerpt from the sermon "The Birth of John." This excerpt sheds light on the meaning of repentance....
Bank on God's Good Promise
An excerpt from the sermon "Hope in the Lord!" This excerpt encourages us to rest in God's promise instead of being restless on account of adverse circumstances....
The Real Answer to the Real Problem
An excerpt from the sermon "Behold The Everlasting Light!" This excerpt points us to the real problem (sin) and the real answer (Christ and His cross)....
Husbands, Share Christ's Suffering
An excerpt from the sermon "Following Christ on the Path of Suffering." This excerpt calls upon husbands to become like Christ in His suffering and death (Philippians 3:10)....
The Résumé That Won't Cut It (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 3:4-9...
Remain in the Lord! (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 3:1-3...
Rejoice in the Lord! (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 3:1a...
Love Exemplified: Part 2 (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recap his sermon on Philippians 2:25-30...
Love Exemplified: Part 1 (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:19-24...
How a Minister and Congregation Should Get Along (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:14-18...
The Present and Eternal Benefits of Glad-Hearted Submission (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:14-16...
The Christian's Obedience, Part 4 (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:12-13 (Part 4)...
The Christian's Obedience, Part 3 (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:12-13 (Part 2)...
The Christian's Obedience, Part 2 (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:12-13 (Part 2)...
The Christian's Obedience, Part 1 (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:12-13 (Part 1)...
Humble and Bowed Down Before Jesus Our Lord (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:9-11 (Part 1)...
Be Devoted to the Interests of Others (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:3-5 (Part 2)...
A Call to Prayer (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon entitled "A Call To Prayer"...
The Lord is Jealous and Good (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Nahum 1:1-8...
Humbly Hold Others in High Regard (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:3-5 (Part 1)...
Worthwhile Events: May 3, 2018
Pastor Brian commends two worthwhile events taking place on Thursday, May 3, 2018....
Patterned After Jesus (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:6-11...
Together in Deep Spiritual Unity (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 2:1-2...
Together to Do Battle (Sermon Recap)
Pastor Brian recaps his sermon on Philippians 1:27-30...