Paul wrote the little, twenty-five verse of Philemon to a slave-owner.  Paul was sending escaped slave, Onesimus, back to his owner, and Paul wrote to persuade Philemon to receive Onesimus back as a newly converted brother in Christ.  The letter is an excellent look at Christian accountability, conversion, and generosity.c  

The book of Colossians was written to a church that had been infected by false teaching.  Paul told this church that he prayed constantly for them to the effect that they would grow in maturity and wisdom with respect to God's will for them.  This sermon examines the dangers of false teaching and the way to be protected against it.

This week's sermon is a discussion of Paul's outrage over the fact that the Galatian church had allowed false teachers to enter the church and pollute the gospel.  The sermon explores the fact this this distortion of truth occured less than one generation away from the start of the church.  How much more can false teachings haunt us, now 2000 years past the start of the church.  Galatians 1:6-10 is the text.

This sermon is the first in a short look at the letter to the Colossians.  The sermon contrasts the difference between the postmodern mind and that of the believer which favors the certain of the Good News and the message of Christ.

This sermon finishes a short series on the book of Acts.  Acts 16:11-40 is the text, and the subject is the way that Paul, Silas, and other church leaders were transformed by the mission that God had given to the church to move westward.  The story of courage, passion, and intention is inspiring to modern-day disciples of Jesus.

The text for this sermon comes from 1 Corinthians 12:1-11.  In this text, Paul tells the Corinthian church that the gifts the Spirit gave to her were meant to be used for the benefit of the members of that community.

This sermon comes from Matthew 25:14-30 and looks at the Parable of the Talents.  This parable sits within a larger section of Matthew and comprises a body of teaching from Jesus about the importance of preparation.

This sermon takes its inspiration from Paul's statement that "what was written beforehand (the Old Testament) was written for our instruction," Romans 15:4.  The sermon examines how Christians can approach the rapid change we are experiencing in the religious world:  knowing about our times, recognizing what is important and what is not, and being able to spot counterfeit teachings.