In the Mud of the Jabbok Date: October 25, 2015 Audio Sermon: Click on the play button below. Jacob is a key figure in the OT, and he is also a character who lives up to his name. The name Jacob means something like “deceiver.” When he was born, Jacob was grasping Esau’s heel, and “heel grabber” is a Hebraism that means he would be “a trickster.” There are several specific instances throughout Jacob’s life where he reveals his true colors as a deceiver and trickster. However, when Jacob is on his way back to see Esau after living with his uncle Laban for nearly twenty years, he ends up in a circumstance where he is once again struggling to get what he wants. But it is only when Jacob is at the end of himself does he begin to realize something about who he is. In Genesis 32:24-32 records […]

The Battle Against Lust Date: October 10, 2015 Audio Sermon: Click on the play button below. Details: First minute or two is missing. Lust has been viewed as a semi-innocuous, more subtle form of sin that has not been taken very seriously by many Christians by-and-large. When people think about lust, they often envision some sex-hungry person who sleeps around or who hires prostitutes and engages in debauchery and other immoral acts. To the ignorance of many, lust has a much less obvious side to it, but one that is just as corrupting and toxic to us. Lust is like a cancer that begins to grow in one place but then quickly spreads and rapidly infects other areas of our lives. It can be like a silent killer that dwells in the darkness of our soul and then rears its ugly head to cause all kinds of destruction and havoc. […]