Central Community Church | Sermon Audio

Luke 2:25-33 All Advent we’ve been waiting—and now we celebrate: The Light has come! Jesus Christ is born, and through Him, God’s salvation has appeared to all people. Simeon held baby Jesus and called Him “a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to Your people Israel.” Jesus is the Light that darkness cannot overcome. He shines into our hearts, gives us life, and leads us in truth. At Christmas, we remember not just that Jesus was born, but that He still shines today—saving, guiding, and transforming us; and one day will come again to restore the earth and shine so bright for all eternity that there will be no need for the sun or moon in the sky because the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb (Rev. 21:23).

Luke 2:13-14 What’s something you’ve seen or experienced that left you utterly speechless, creating a moment of pure awe and wonder? One that stopped time itself, where all you could muster was “Wow!” and it changed your life forever.

Luke 2:13-14 The angels break through some 400 years of silence to and declare two marvelous truths; glory to God and peace to mankind. These truths find their genesis in the fulfillment of God’s promise born in Bethlehem, love made manifest, love determined to redeem what was lost.

Luke 2:13-14 What’s something you’ve seen or experienced that left you utterly speechless, creating a moment of pure awe and wonder? One that stopped time itself, where all you could muster was “Wow!” and it changed your life forever.

Luke 2:8-12 Shepherds. Dirty, stinky shepherds. This was the lowly group of people God first announced the birth of his Son Jesus to. The angel put it this way: Jesus’ birth was good news of great joy for all people. That was the case then and continues to be the case today.

Luke 2:8-12 Christmas is God choosing the mess that the world refuses. The good news first came to lowly, looked down upon, shepherds – outsiders who became the first evangelists. Their story declares that good news of great joy – salvation in Jesus Christ – will be for all the people. In Christ, true joy is found – not in circumstance, but in the presence of the Savior who came for our messy lives.

Luke 2:8-12 God announced Jesus’ birth not to the powerful but to humble shepherds, showing that His love is for ordinary, overlooked people like us. When His glory returned that night, it marked the arrival of the King who came to save. And the sign was simple: a baby in a manger. Jesus came to rescue you, to call you, and to bring you into God’s family. The only question is whether you will come to Him as the shepherds did, with a willing heart.

Luke 2:1-7 In this second week of Advent, we focus on the BethlehemCandle, also known as the candle of preparation and peace. Bethlehem reminds us that God often works through small and ordinary places to accomplish His greatest purposes. The birth of Jesus shows that true peace doesn’t come from perfect circumstances but from God’s presence with us. As we look at the humility of Bethlehem and the faith of Mary andJoseph, we’re invited to prepare our hearts and receive the peace Christ brings.

Luke 2:1-7 The Bethlehem Candle reminds us of Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem in preparation for the birth of the Messiah. Their obedient faith and Jesus’ royal lineage challenge us with the fact that we have a King worth preparing for - and he’s coming soon.

Luke 2:1-7 God chose an unlikely place for the Saviour’s birth—Bethlehem, a small and humble town. It was not grand or powerful, but it was where God’s plan unfolded perfectly. The birth, ministry, and death of Jesus are all marked by humility.

Luke 1:26-33 God’s promises are sure and true, piercing the darkness like a bright light. The prophets spoke of Jesus’ coming – the long-awaited fulfillment of God’s covenant faithfulness. This message centers on hope rooted in God’s unchanging Word – Christ as the promised King whose kingdom will never end.

Luke 1:26-33 When Gabriel appeared to Mary he declared the coming fulfillment of numerous OT prophecies, all to be realized in Jesus. The fulfillment of the promises demonstrate that Jesus is indeed the Messiah and that God’s faithfulness can be trusted.

Luke 1:26-33 Long before Jesus was born, God promised to send a Saviour. Through the prophets, He spoke of a coming King who would bring light to a dark world. For centuries, God’s people waited and hoped. Even when they couldn’t see how His promises would come true, God was faithful. The same God who kept His promises then keeps His promises today.

Matthew 6:19-24 Money is an essential tool for accessing the necessities of life. But if we’re not careful, it can also become our master – a role designed for Jesus only. We must choose: Will Jesus be my Master, or will money? And when I choose Jesus, I choose His way – a life of generosity, investing in His Kingdom and laying up treasures in heaven instead of treasures on earth.

Matthew 6.19-24 We are worshipers and what we do with our money is a key indicator of what we treasure in our hearts. Jesus pulls no punches; saying we cannot serve God and money.

Mathew 6: 19-24 Money is necessary for all members of society; Christian and non-Christian alike. The way money is viewed and used, however, should look very different within the Christian community. Money should be used for God’s purposes as He is the ultimate source and owner. The way we steward His money ultimately demonstrates where we put our trust.

1 Corinthians 13: 1-3 After the first encounter between Jesus and Peter after Peter’s epic failure of denial, Jesus bypasses a discussion on the actual denial (or action) and asks a penetrating heart question: “Do You Love Me?” It’s a strange question because Peter had already been following Jesus for three years and given up many comforts to serve with Jesus. Now he was faced to consider his motives. This is the theme of this weekend’s message. Do we love Jesus? Why and how much? Perhaps more importantly, would we be willing to change the motivation behind some of the “things we do” for Him (and others) to love rather than habit, ought, routine or fear. It makes a difference. And it’s important.

Psalms 13:1-6 Prayer in Groaning Times - Dr. Gerry Breshears

1 Timothy 2:1-8 Corporate prayer is an important means of grace because through it God grows our relationship with Him through Christ, He grows our relationships with other Christians, and He leads people to salvation in the name of Jesus.

1 Timothy 2:1-8 Corporate prayer is a means of grace because it is a God-given way for the Church to seek Him together, experience His presence, express unity, and receive spiritual blessing through shared dependence and intercession. While personal prayer is vital, praying together uniquely builds up the Church, invites God’s power and presence in a collective way, and unifies us around Christ’s mission to seek and to save the lost.

1 Timothy 2:1-8 Corporate prayer is a means of grace because it is a God-given way for the church to seek Him together, experience His presence, express unity, and receive spiritual blessing through shared dependence and intercession. While personal prayer is vital, praying together uniquely builds up the church, invites God’s power and presence in a collective way, and unifies us with Jesus in the advancement of the gospel.

Matthew 6:5–8 This morning we look at Jesus’ teaching on personal prayer from Matthew 6:5–8. Far from being a performance, prayer is a seemingly ordinary practice that draws us into an honest, dependent, and life changing relationship with God. Jesus teaches us how to pray sincerely, trust God’s guidance, and experience the transforming grace that comes from simply showing up and speaking from the heart.

Matthew 6:5-8 For the atheist prayer is a meaningless religious chore with no positive benefit or purpose. However, for the follower of Christ, prayer is an incredible privilege that has benefits both in this life and the one to come! Prayer is an incredible opportunity because through Jesus we have access to a good God whose ear is always attentive to His children’s petitions and praises.

Matthew 6:5-8 Most of us were never taught how to communicate, whether with a spouse, a parent, or even with God, and have spent our lives learning by trial and error. Before the disciples asked Jesus, “Teach us to pray,” there was no clear instruction on how to speak with God: Should we pray aloud or silently? Eyes open or closed? Kneeling or standing? The questions are endless. Yet prayer was never meant to be a ritual to perfect, but a relationship to deepen. In this message, we’ll explore what God says about prayer, look at practical ways to apply it, and then put it into practice together, discovering that true prayer is not performance but personal dialogue with a God who listens and rewards the sincere heart.

1 Peter 4:8-11 Fellowship is considered an ordinary means of grace because God uses the relationships within the body of Christ to strengthen, encourage, and sanctify believers through the gospel. The Christian life demands community. We need each other. “One another” appears 100 times in the New Testament and approximately 60 of those occurrences are specific commands teaching us how (and how not to) relate to one another. God has ordained for the church to be the kind of community that “one anothers” well!

1 Peter 4:8-11 We live in a world starved for community. As believers we often take for granted the extraordinary grace that God has provided in and through Christian community - our fellowship. Like vital signs that indicate a healthy body, love, hospitality, and selfless service are indicators of a body that manifests and witnesses grace to one another and a watching world. In the end, the goal of Christian Community is to love, embrace, and serve one another all to the glory of God.

1 Peter 4:8-11 We can easily take for granted the power the Christian community around us helps us persevere and flourish along the path of sanctification. As we experience the love of Christ through mutual forgiveness, the inclusion of Christ through intentional hospitality, and the hands of Christ in self-sacrificial service we are transformed. The ordinary means of grace in Christian community will create an immovable and faithful church with a beautiful apologetic to the world.

In our continuing series ‘The Ordinary Path to Extraordinary Grace’ we discover a beautiful purpose of the local church; The Purpose of Discipleship. The church is not a building with a street address but rather the group of people who meet together to worship, learn, love and serve. All the ordinances and practices within the local church are part of the discipleship process. We are discipled so that we can disciple others.

Ephesians 4:11-16 The church is designed to be a body made up of many members who build one another up into maturity and the fullness of Christ. We are also called to imitate others who are following Christ and disciple others in such a way that they also can disciple others.

Ephesians 4:11-16 The primary context for discipleship is the local church. It is the primary place that God desires to shape and form His people more and more into the image of His Son Jesus. For this reason, the local church is an ordinary yet extraordinary means of grace.

Colossians 3:15-17 lists 3 different ways that God pours out his grace upon followers of Christ as the church gathers corporately. Each one of these is an opportunity for thankfulness and a means of grace that should point us closer to Christ.

Colossians 3:15-17 When we consider all the means of grace Jesus has given to His Church, corporate worship may be the most significant. Through it, we participate together in every other means of grace as the gathered body of Christ. As a result, our spiritual health is deeply shaped by how fully or how little we engage in corporate worship.

Colossians 3:15-17 The church gathering is the place where God has determined to regularly and routinely meets His people through the ordinary means of grace of preaching, the ordinances, singing, prayer, and Christian fellowship. Not only is God honoured when we gather to worship Him, our souls desperately need the weekly rhythm of corporate worship and He gladly nourishes our souls with His grace.

2 Timothy 4:1-5 Preaching the Word of the Living God is the pinnacle of the means of grace because it is through God’s Word that Christ is most visibly displayed to the Church. In biblical preaching, a congregation encounters the living Christ and what glorious grace that is! We find in Scripture both the explanation of what true preaching is and the effects that faithful preaching produces as the Holy Spirit mediates God’s grace to us. It is imperative that we take the charge of gospel preaching seriously in our churches because only the Word can give spiritual life to the hearer. God graciously uses the preached Word to call the lost and grow the found. It is grace that saves and grace that sanctifies. This grace comes to us as we hear and receive the Word by faith.

2 Timothy 4:1-5 Of all the means of grace, preaching may be the most mundane. Who likes to sit for 40 minutes and listen to someone talk? Today, explore why God values preaching so much, and how you can experience the transformative glory of Jesus through the preaching of Scripture.

In 2 Timothy 4:1-5, Paul reminds us of the simple but powerful call to “preach the Word.” When we gather to hear God’s Word proclaimed, something real happens: faith is awakened, our souls are fed, our lives are shaped in holiness, and Christ is lifted high. This sermon is an invitation to see preaching not as routine, but as one of the ways God personally meets us with His grace.

1 Corinthians 11:17-34 Communion (the Lord’s Supper), instituted by Jesus, is an ordinary means of grace because it is a regular, God-ordained, tangible practice through which Christ spiritually nourishes, strengthens, and assures His people by the power of the Holy Spirit. By participating, our faith is deepened, we are sustained, and our hope in Christ solidifies as we get a foretaste of glory.

1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Communion can easily become a repeated ritual where the Christian shares a small meal of bread and juice, but doesn’t think much more of it. However, Scripture reveals that there is so much more to the Lord’s Supper! Communion is a very real, physical, participatory reminder of the Gospel and the union God desires us to have with Christ and His church.

1 Corinthians 11:17-34 The Lord’s Supper is one of the most widely practiced but least understood aspects of the Christian faith. Too often, it’s treated as a quick ritual before the bread and cup are passed, rather than the profound means of grace God intends. Throughout church history, believers and skeptics alike have debated its significance, practice, and meaning, and even today, many remain confused. This morning, we’ll open God’s Word to discover the true beauty of the Lord’s Supper. Why do we do this? Why bread and wine (or juice)? Who should partake and when should we abstain? Most importantly, what gift has God placed in our hands through this sacred meal? Join us as we uncover the depth, joy, and grace found at the Lord’s table.

Acts 2:37-41 Since the very first days of church baptism has been a highly important and incredibly powerful public demonstration of your death, burial, and resurrection with Jesus. What makes baptism so powerful is simple. It serves as an expression of your faith, physically demonstrates your union with Jesus, and is sign of your newness of life in Christ.

Acts 2:37-41 From the start of the church in Acts 2 faith and baptism have been intertwined. A tangible evidence of God’s grace, Baptism serves as an outward witness of an inner transformation by God through Christ. Not only does it serve as a means whereby commitment to Christ is fortified, it also serves as a witness to both the Body of Christ and the world of the powerful work of Christ.

Acts 2:37-41 You would be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful and powerful practice in the Christian Church than the act of baptism. The ordinance is a means of grace because it is a tangible sign of the gospel (plunged under the cleansing waters signifies burial and death to sin and coming up out of the water signifies resurrection life) and displays obedience and surrender to Jesus who modelled and commands us to be baptized.

2 Timothy 3:14-17 Some regard the practice of Bible reading as a dull and dreaded chore. Nevertheless, the Bible is an incredible book that can be more captivating than the best JRR Tolkien or JK Rowling page turner. The Bible is unlike any other book in that it’s inspired by God and reveals in authoritative ways who God is through the person of Jesus. In this way reading the Bible is one of the primary means in which God pours out His grace upon us.

2 Timothy 3:14-17 Reading the Bible is a means of grace. Through it, God speaks directly to His people – revealing Himself, nourishing faith, renewing the mind, and transforming lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. Scripture is not just information; it is living and active (Hebrews 4:12), and God uses it as a primary channel of His sustaining, sanctifying grace – and you will be blessed by reading it & keeping it!

2 Timothy 3:14-17 Reading the Bible is a means of grace because through it God speaks directly to His people—revealing Himself, nourishing faith, renewing the mind, and transforming lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. Scripture is not just information; God uses it as a primary channel for transformation through saving, sustaining, sanctifying grace.