Fellowship Bible Church Sermons

1 Timothy 2:1-2 .In this message, Pastor Lorch begins a series on prayer. Prayer can be defined simply as talking with God. There is nothing mysterious about prayer. If the Creator-God has revealed Himself to us, it is to be expected that He will desire His creatures to talk to Him. Prayer is directed toward the true and living God. There are several kinds of prayer mentioned in Scripture. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 mentions general prayer, as well as prayers of thanksgiving, supplication, and intercession. We also find in Scripture prayers of confession.

Proverbs 6:12-19 May 10, 2026 PM.Pastor Lorch teaches about the marks of the "worthless" and "wicked" man who is a troublemaker. He uses perverse speech, sinister gestures, has in his heart to do evil, premeditates his evil deeds, and stirs up controversy. God detests this kind of behavior and those who practice it. The Proverbs six man is in direct contrast to the Matthew 5 man, who is humble in spirit and a peacemaker. Which man do you resemble?

2 Corinthians 7:8-16 May 10, 2026 AM.In these verses, the apostle Paul shows us how the Corinthian church demonstrated true repentance. This becomes a model for us to evaluate our own repentance.

Various May 10, 2026 SS.In this message, Pastor answered a question concerning Solomon's moral decline and how the children of Israel corrected the problem of improper marriages after the exile.

Ezra May 6, 2026 PM.The book of Ezra records the initial return from exile of Zerubbabel and Ezra, the rebuilding of the temple, the opposition to the Jews and their work, and Ezra's moral reforms. It demonstrates God's provision and protection and reiterates His call for holiness among His people that they should implement by following His word, something Ezra desired to do himself. After long absence due to their disobedience, the Jewish people were back in their land. This history, along with Nehemiah with which it was originally paired, explains how God was still working in the nation for moral and religious reform, and He was also working outside of the nation with pagan kings, in order to preserve and restore His people. The temple that these people built was eventually expanded into a beautiful edifice in the first century A.D. when Jesus came to it.

Various May 3, 2026 PM.Pastor Postiff shares a few passages from Scripture that encourage us to be eagerly awaiting the return of Jesus. In sharing the Table of the Lord, we do so until the Lord comes.

2 Corinthians 7:2-7 May 3, 2026 AM.From what Paul writes to the Corinthians, we can learn several ways to respond well when someone corrects us. The recipient of correction must receive admonition well by responding with an open heart, recognizing the challenge that correction offers to the mentor instead of just thinking of self, and reacting with genuine repentance.

Various March 3, 2026 SS.Mr. Widgeon re-started our study on God's mercy in Exodus 34:6-7. He shared some statistics on the words used to describe God's mercy to remind us that there is not scant or selective evidence of the mercy of the Lord. It is overwhelming. He then covered some of the Hebrew and Greek words that describe God's tender, loving, compassionate, unmerited kindness. One listener noted that the Bible was like an expert witness testifying of the abundant mercy of God.

Proverbs 6:6-11 April 29, 2026 PM.Pastor Lorch preaches about laziness. He follows the passage in Proverbs 6 by giving a lesson from an ant and a farmer, followed by the consequences of laziness, and finally an explanation of the attitude of a lazy person.

Romans 1:16 April 26, 2026 PM.Missionary Tom Gibbons gives us three reasons not to be ashamed of the gospel from Romans 1:16. First, the constitution of the gospel is that it is God's power. Second, the gospel's capacity is salvation. And third, because the gospel's compass is to every person.

2 Corinthians 6:11-7:1 April 26, 2026 AM.The apostle Paul is drawing this section of a letter to a close by directly appealing to the Corinthians to respond well to him and to get out from under the influence of whoever is troubling them, undoubtedly some false teachers who are trying to discredit Paul's ministry or drag the Corinthians back into their idolatrous ways.

Various April 26, 2026 SS.In this message our focus is on the mercy of God. We visited a number of passages in which we see that God's mercy is at the forefront of His dealings with humanity. The concept appears everywhere in the Scriptures. We will look at Exodus 34 as our launching pad. This was a pivotal point in Israel's history. It follows the golden calf incident that occurred after Moses received the first tablet containing the Ten Commandments.

2 Kings April 22, 2026 PM.2 Kings continues seamlessly where 1 Kings left off, with Ahaziah and the departure of Elijah. Elisha is the main prophet in the first half of 2 Kings. Chapter 17 records that the northern kingdom was taken captive by the Assyrians (about 722 B.C.), and the southern kingdom comes to a similar demise at the end of chapter 25 (586 B.C.). God did this to the nation because it continued to practice idolatry instead of following the 10 commandments. The message of 2 Kings is united with that of 1 Kings: to show the Israelites of later generations what happened to their earlier glorious nation, that it happened because of rebellion and idolatry against God, and thus how a similar fate can be avoided in the future.

Various April 19, 2026 PM.We learned some more this week about differences between Bible translations in an effort to think about what would be a good translation for us to read and study.

2 Corinthians 6:3-10 April 19, 2026 AM.The apostle Paul persevered in a godly way through many adverse situations and ironies put upon him because of the nature of Christian ministry. He wanted the ministry to avoid any kind of blames so that the gospel would progress without unnecessary hindrance.

Various April 19, 2026 SS.We take another look at Christian moral purity and excellence of character. Studying the character of the men and women in the Bibile is a great way to cultivate character like theirs. Meditate on God's work in their lives, and ask God how He would like to work in your life.

1 Kings April 15, 2026 PM.1 Kings recounts the history of Israel from the death of David through Solomon's reign (971-931 B.C.) until Jehoshaphat in the southern kingdom (reign 873-848 B.C.) and Ahaziah in the north (853-852 B.C.), covering a time span of roughly 120 years. The main topics in 1 Kings are the rise and reign of Solomon, the building of the temple and its dedication, Solomon's departure from the Lord, the division of the kingdom into north and south because of Solomon's disobedience and Rehoboam's foolishness causing the northern tribes' secession (1 Kings 11:35-36; 12:16-17), and the early kings of both kingdoms. The Internet service at the church was down this evening, so there is no Youtube livestream of this service.

Various April 12, 2026 PM.In this message we look at the differences between English versions of the Bible, with an eye toward selecting a good translation for reading and study.

John 20:24-31 April 12, 2026 AM.Do you sometimes have doubts that the Christian faith is true? Or that Jesus really rose from the dead? Christians are unsure at times, have hidden doubts and are afraid to say anything lest they be thought less of. They may really not want to have those doubts. Non-Christians doubt too, often with a mindset that is skeptical or cynical. In John 20, we have an interaction between the apostle Thomas and the Lord Jesus which shows us how the Lord helped Thomas process his doubts, and by extension how you can get through yours, to life eternal.

Various April 12, 2026 SS.The character trait of interest in this message is general moral purity and excellence. This is a broad idea that concerns good morals in inter-personal life and private morality, whether in business dealings, sexual purity, and general godliness including having one's life centered around Jesus.

2 Samuel April 8, 2026 PM.The book of 2 Samuel recounts the history of King David and the early monarchy that was started in 1 Samuel. The entire focus is on King David, who secures his rule over Judah and Jerusalem, and later over the remainder of the nation of Israel. He learns of God's covenant promise to him and his descendancy. Then he extends the kingdom with victories over the Philistines, Ammonites and Syrians. But the story is marred by the sin of God's people, as usually the case in human history, including David's sin with Bathsheba and Uriah, Absalom's coup, and David carrying out the improper census.

Acts 2:22-40 April 5, 2026 AM.Similar to our Good Friday evening service, in this message we examine the fact and meaning of the resurrection. As for the fact of it, we reviewed the content of our message from last year. Regarding the meaning, we touched on the meaning of the resurrection for the non-Christian, that Jesus is coming again as judge. We touched on the meaning of the resurrection for the Christian, with all the implications of personal salvation attached, including our justification. We spent more significant time thinking about the meaning of the resurrection for Jesus Himself, including His exaltation as Lord and Christ and returning King.

Various April 5, 2026 Sunrise.Pastor Lorch encourages us with a message concerning one important result of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, namely that we too can be alive with Christ and in Him.

Luke 22-23 April 3, 2026 PM.For this Good Friday service, we examined the fact of the crucifixion by reading the Biblical account as well as from the perspective of several external sources including Tacitus, Lucian, Thallus, and even the Jewish Talmud. We then looked at the meaning of the crucifixion in terms of the "it is finished" accomplishment of Jesus. Everything necessary for salvation to be provided for mankind was completed by the Lord at the cross. The resurrection, of course, is the exclamation point on the whole matter. Our next messages address that great event.

Proverbs 6:1-5 April 1, 2026 PM.The wisdom of Proverbs turns our attention to the need to avoid sudden entrapment and ruin in financial matters. We learn not to become entangled in another person's debt by becoming surety or a pledge, or in today's terms "co-signing" a loan. The lessons here can be generalized to help us avoid generally risky financial decisions. We learn that if we have gotten ourselves into a situation like this that we need to humble ourselves and take decisive steps to fix the problem.

Various March 29, 2026 PM.In this message we complete a simple overview of the Hebrew and Greek text, various text families, and how we can decode the notes in our reference and study Bibles when those notes have to do with differences between manuscripts.

2 Corinthians 6:1-2 March 29, 2026 AM.In this message, we add another urgent plea to receive God's gracious offer of reconciliation because the time is today. We deliver this truth because now is the time when salvation is available. What God promised thousands of years ago is now. God will hear your penitent prayer and save you. The time is today. "Today" will close at some point in your future. Seek the Lord while he may be found. Call to Him while He is near. Forsake your evil way and thoughts. Return to the LORD and He will have mercy on you. He will pardon your iniquity (Isa 55:6).

Various March 29, 2026 SS.Humanity faces only two ultimate destinations: life with God or eternal separation from Him. Though many believe that different religions or sincere efforts can lead to God, Scripture teaches that all people begin on the same path — one leading to death because of sin. Only God Himself provides the remedy through the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This message explains why Christ alone bridges the gulf and offers the only way to be with God forever.

Proverbs 5:15-23 March 25, 2026 PM.In the second sermon on Proverbs 5, we learn how to guard against infidelity. In short, verse 19 summarizes for us: always be enraptured with your spouse's love. Find sexual satisfaction only in your spouse. Find that kind of pleasure in the marriage relationship alone. Do not give yourself to any other person than your spouse (or future spouse) and do enjoy the God-given pleasure in marriage. It is not only for procreation, but also pleasure and protection against infidelity.

Various March 22, 2026 PM.We continue our series about how the Bible came to us in the modern era with some background on the Hebrew and Greek text, various text families, and how we can "decode" the notes in our reference and study Bibles when those notes have to do with differences between manuscripts.

2 Cor. 5:20-21 March 22, 2026 AM.Paul draws this section of the letter to a close by calling for the readers to be reconciled to God and explains how that can happen. We set out to cover 5:20-6:2, but got only as far as 5:21.

Various March 22, 2026 SS.Our long-time missionary partners update us on their work and a recent trip to share the love of Christ and His message to those in need.

1 Samuel March 18, 2026 PM.The book of 1 Samuel recounts the story of Samuel, his relationship to the first two kings of Israel, Saul and David, and the history of the start of the monarchy. Samuel is the main character and has the roles of prophet (Acts 13:20, 1 Samuel 3:20), priest, judge, and de-facto leader of the nation as it transitioned from the anarchy of the judges to a monarchy first under King Saul, and then to King David.

Various March 15, 2026 PM.In this installment of "how we got our Bible" we learned about translation, publication, distribution, illumination, and interpretation. We also saw some interesting (and overwhelming) statistics about the reliability of the Scriptures in terms of manuscript evidence.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19 March 15, 2026 AM.Paul is talking about reconciliation, specifically (1) that God through Christ accomplishes reconciliation, and (2) that God assigned Paul and his audience to minister the reconciling message to others. God has a tremendous thing in sending Jesus to be the reconciling mediator between us. And He wrote a whole bunch of letters to you about being reconciled. Are you storing those letters, unopened, in a box to send back to Him someday? Or are you reading those letters and heeding His call to be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ?

Zephaniah March 15, 2026 SS.Our studies in Zephaniah are drawing to a close. This session, we walked through the book in an outline form, pointed out three verses that are representative of some of the teaching in Zephaniah, and then correlated those three verses with some New Testament verses that touch on the same subjects.

Judges March 11, 2026 PM.The book of Judges recounts the history of Israel between Joshua and Samuel, about 350 years until God chose Saul to be the first king of the nation. During the period prior to Saul and the Davidic monarchy, Israel was governed theocratically, without a human king but with God leading them through the Law and the priesthood, as well as specially chosen people who were called judges. They were deliverers in times of oppression by foreign nations. This oppression was punishment from God for their violation of His law and in fulfillment of His word that He would punish them in this way.

Various March 8, 2026 PM.Our study in how the Bible came to us continues with how the simple formatting like spaces and chapters came into being, how canon was formed, and just a bit about translation from original languages into English or other languages.

2 Corinthians 5:16-17 March 8, 2026 AM.Verses 14-15 in turn have two consequences, denoted by “therefore” at the beginning of each of verses 16 and 17. The first consequence has to do with to how we regard people. The second consequence concerns anyone who in faith follows Jesus because that person becomes a new creation. I hope this message will encourage you to let these two consequences of the death of Christ sink in and cause you to live in His way: in how you regard people, and in how you live in Christ as a new creation.

Zephaniah 1 March 8, 2026 SS.We continue the study of Zephaniah starting with 2:1-3 and how God calls for repentance BEFORE judgment breaks out. Then, we look at the various sins listed in Zephaniah, followed by the day of the Lord theme in the historical context of the Babylonian captivity, as well as some texts that point to the far future.

Proverbs 5:1-14 March 4, 2026 PM.Wisdom is skill for living in God's morally ordered world. In this message, Pastor Lorch teaches us how to respond wisely to sexual immorality. First, the author of Proverbs shows us the painful consequences of sexual sin, then later he highlights the joys of marital intimacy. This message addresses the first of those concerns by teaching us to guard ourselves from sinful sensuality. We do this for four reasons: (1) It is enticing. (2) It is ensnaring. (3) It brings regret. (4) It is destructive. We then learn two practical applications. First, remove yourself from situations in which you could be tempted. Do not be careless. Second, discipline yourself to love godly wisdom by being in God's word and loving God's people so you will listen to them when they give good advice.

Titus 2:11-14 March 1, 2026 PM.For our Lord's Table service, we reviewed Paul's teaching to Titus about the grace of God that appeared to all people for salvation, and that teaches us to deny ungodliness, to live righteously, and to look forward to the coming of Christ. God has explained through Paul the basis for living and doing church the way that was commanded in Titus 1 and 2. The basis is the grace of God that brings salvation and sanctification, and teaches us to look forward to the coming of Christ. This is sufficient motivation for us to live the Christian life.