The sermon on Sunday, September 7, 2025, will be from Revelation 1:1-3, The Revelation of Jesus Christ: An Introduction. “The revelation of Jesus Christ, …” – Revelation 1:1
A Southern Baptist New Testament scholar, Dr. Thomas Schreiner, states, “The book of Revelation is not a prophecy chart about the future but a call to be a disciple of Jesus. John tells us to be faithful and fruitful, and we should not give in to despair, for in the end, all will be well.” Have Christians in the 20th and 21st Centuries heeded Dr. Schreiner’s counsel? The Holy Spirit’s intent in these 22 chapters is to instill in Christian disciples increasing levels of Christian maturity, strength, and courage. The apostle John’s original audience probably faced the rage of the Roman emperor Domitian (A.D. 81-96). The Triune God reminded them of his absolute dominion and sovereignty; and he reminded them that the cross must come before the crown.
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The sermon on Sunday, August 31, 2025, will be from Matthew 22:1-14, Your Personal Invitation to the Great Banquet. “… everything is ready …” – Matthew 22:4, 8
Wedding feasts were festive occasions in 1st Century Jewish culture. The celebration could last for a week and an invitation from a king to attend his son’s wedding feast was a coveted honor. In a spiritual sense, ‘God the Father Almighty’ is currently sending out an invitation to all of mankind – “Come to the marriage supper of my Son!” (Rev. 19:6-10) Guests, through faith, will feast on the best of breads … the bread of life (John 6:35). They will also, by faith, drink the finest of wines … the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-21). “Everything is ready!” God invites us to a feast, not a funeral, when the gospel of his Son is preached!
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, August 24, 2025, will be from Mark 12:28-34, An Encounter at the Edge of the Kingdom. “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” – Mark 12:34
Have you heard the phrase, “… so close, and yet, so far away?” 50 years ago, I needed 21 ‘merit badges’ to become an ‘Eagle Scout.’ I stopped at 19 ‘badges’ and have come to regret my unwise decision. Yet what about coming close, but missing the kingdom of God? An eternity of regret awaits those who miss Christ’s kingdom. The scribe in Mark 12:28-34 understood the demands of God’s moral law – it requires sinless perfection. But he did not understand his inability to keep the law and his need for Christ. What about you? Are you standing outside the door to God’s kingdom? Or have you entered through it? That door is Christ (John 10:1-10).
Sunday Sermon Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, August 10, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 12:7-10- “… Through Thorny Ways Leads to a Joyful End …” “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.” -2 Corinthians 12:8
The Apostle Paul pled, and he pled three times, for the Lord to remove his ‘thorn in the flesh.’ Yet Christ responded, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Weakness and difficulty from our perspective inhibit us from realizing our personal plans and dreams for life. But, from Christ’s perspective, they open up new opportunities for spiritual growth and development. Through them, he teaches us not to rely on ourselves, but upon God who raises the dead (2 Cor. 1:8-9). We learn to embrace the thorn which once repelled us (12:9-10).
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The sermon on Sunday, August 10, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 11:16-33 – Suffering for His Name’s Sake. “If I must boast, …” – 2 Corinthians 11:30
According to Paul’s teaching elsewhere, boasting is prohibited in the life of the Christian (Romans 3:27-28; Ephesians 2:8-9). Salvation from beginning to end is all of grace and Christians must avoid boasting as they would the plague. But in our verse above, Paul must reluctantly boast about his untold sufferings for Christ and the gospel. We read these verses (11:22-33) and recoil in disbelief – “How was he able to endure these sufferings?” Well, he persevered by the grace Christ abundantly supplied and so shall we (12:7-10).
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, August 3, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 6:3-10 – A Faultless Ministry. “… as having nothing, yet possessing everything.” – 2 Corinthians 6:10
Serving Christ in his church as a lay-leader or a minister may require one to face conundrums. Certain situations may not make sense. In 2 Corinthians Chapter 6, we see that Paul endured these sorts of dilemmas (6:8-10) and we must expect them too in the 21st Century. Yet, in the ‘trough’ of suffering, he discovered the sufficiency of the grace of Christ. The same grace awaits us when we commit our ways to the Lord Jesus (Psalm 37:3-7)
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, July 27, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 – Crooked Sticks and Straight Lines. “… treasure in jars of clay …” – 2 Corinthians 4:7
Back in the days of ‘cold, hard cash’, people stored their life’s savings in unlikely places. $100 bills wound up in freezers, between box-springs and mattresses, and in out-houses! Well, under these ‘new covenant’ days, God has hidden his gospel treasure in an unlikely place – “… in jars of clay, …”. What is Paul communicating with the metaphor? He is highlighting the fragility of the ‘jars’ (Christian ministers and witnesses) and the inestimable value of the ‘treasure’ (the gospel of Christ). Really?? Would God the Father Almighty (who has the hosts of heaven at his disposal) use redeemed sinners to assist in announcing his eternal purpose in Christ to the nations? Paul would say, “Yes!! That is exactly right!!” Ponder the profundity of this and view yourself as a jar of clay which contains eternal riches for the benefit of spiritually bankrupt human beings all around you.
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, July 20, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 4:1-6, The Light Shining in the Darkness. “Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart.” – 2 Corinthians 4:1-6
The best lessons often begin with a simple question, so, let me ask, “How did the Apostle Paul persevere in the work of Christian ministry?” If you wonder why I ask this question, read 2 Corinthians 11:22-33 and call me in the morning! Paul faced overwhelming opposition, persecution, and suffering as he followed the Lord Jesus and answered his call to preach the gospel to the nations with a “Yes.” The verse above gives us the answer to our question; he refers back to the ministry of the new covenant in 2 Corinthians Chapter 3. The Spirit of the living God through the gospel redeems fallen humanity and writes the law of God upon human hearts transforming sinners into saints (2 Cor. 3:2-3) and translating fallen men and women from the kingdom of Satan to the kingdom of God (Col. 1:13-14). This work of God is the greatest thing happening in the world. So, “We do not lose heart!”
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, July 13, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 3:1-11, The Glory of the New Covenant. “… [God] has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant …” – 2 Corinthians 3:6
Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper with these words, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” (Luke 22:20). So, Christ’s teaching on the evening before his death highlighted the importance of the new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34). Most Presbyterians believe that there is one covenant of grace in the Bible (Gen. 3:15) and this one covenant of grace is ‘differently administered in the time of the law, and in the time of the gospel.’ The Mosaic law pointed forward to the coming of the ‘Mediator’ of the covenant of grace; the gospel causes us to look back in human history to the fulfillment of this one covenant of grace through the life, death, and resurrection of the One Mediator between God and man – the man Christ Jesus (1 Tim. 2:5-6). Salvation is by grace … enjoy!
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA
The sermon on Sunday, July 6, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 2:12-17, Ministering the Gospel Triumphantly. “… Christ always leads us in triumphal procession …” – 2 Corinthians 2:12-17
Gospel ministers and lay Christians who share the gospel are always led in triumph in Christ. You say, “How can that be? Many reject the gospel message they proclaim.” Well, first, the Holy Spirit in 2 Corinthians 2:14 promises success to those who faithfully share their faith in Christ. Furthermore, God also promises in Isaiah 55:11, “… so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Success is guaranteed when we preach, teach, and share the gospel of Christ.
Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory With PCA
