Forward Church Kitchener Sermons

As this part of Luke wraps up, we get the list of the twelve people Jesus handpicks to be His closest friends and followers—His apostles. Some of the names jump out right away: Peter, James, John. They're all over the gospel stories and go on to become major leaders in the early church. But then there are others—guys like James, son of Alphaeus—who we honestly don't hear anything else about, apart from their names. It's a mix of personalities, backgrounds, and even political views. You've got Matthew, a tax collector who worked for the Romans, and then Simon, a Zealot who probably couldn't stand Rome. That's a pretty wild combo to put on the same team. There's no one type of person Jesus chooses. No spiritual résumé required. Some of these guys had serious doubts, some made huge mistakes, and one of them even betrayed Him. Still, Jesus chose them—flawed, messy, regular people—to be part of His mission. And that's the reminder tucked into these few verses: Jesus can call anyone, and He'll use everyone who's willing to say yes to following Him.

Imagine it: it's your day off, the sun's out, there's a soft breeze, and you're just walking through a wheat field with Jesus. As you stroll, you casually pick a head of grain, rub it in your hands, and pop it in your mouth—just enjoying the moment and the peace of being with Him. The whole scene just feels like rest. But not for the Pharisees. They're watching this peaceful moment and instead of seeing rest, all they see are broken rules. And it's the same thing in the next scene, when Jesus heals a man on the Sabbath—they're upset, not amazed. Why? Because somewhere along the way, they lost sight of what the Sabbath was really about. The Sabbath wasn't meant to be a burden—it was meant to be a gift. It's not about control; it's about letting go. It's a weekly reminder that we're not in charge and we don't have to be. The world keeps turning even when we stop working. Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath, is our true rest. And He invites us into that rest—not just once a week, but in every part of our lives. Taking a break, pausing, resting—it's not laziness. It's trust. It's us saying, “Jesus, you've got this.”

We kicked off this part of Luke with Jesus calling some pretty unexpected people to follow Him—but now, He takes it even further. In this story, Jesus doesn't just invite someone unlikely… He invites someone most people would've seen as completely undeserving. Back in the day, tax collectors weren't just unpopular because, well, no one loves paying taxes. In first-century Judea, they were seen as traitors. They worked for the oppressive Roman Empire, collecting money that funded the very soldiers keeping their fellow Jews under control. And to make things worse, most of them padded their own pockets by overcharging people. And yet—Jesus looks at one of them, Levi (aka Matthew), and says, “Follow me.” Just like that. No lecture. No conditions. Just an invitation. And Levi? He's so overwhelmed that he throws a huge party and invites all his fellow outcasts to meet Jesus—the one who reaches out to the people everybody else rejects and says, “You're invited.” And here's the thing: Jesus is still doing that today. He's still inviting the unexpected, the outcasts, and the ones who feel like they don't belong. And every time one of them says “yes”? Heaven throws a party. The only question is—are we joining the celebration? Or are we standing off to the side like the religious folks back then, complaining about grace because we've forgotten just how much we need it too?

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This story is a classic Sunday School favourite and it's easy to see why. You've got friendship, bold faith, and a powerful moment where Jesus not only says He can forgive sins, but proves it. For anyone listening who hasn't made the decision to follow Jesus yet, this is such a great moment to introduce them to who He really is— yes, He's someone who sees and cares about our practical needs, but He also sees our deepest need: the need to be forgiven. Jesus doesn't just fix what's broken on the outside. He goes deeper. He has the authority to heal hearts and make lives whole. And for those of us who already know what Jesus can do, this story is a challenge. It's a reminder that we've got people in our lives who haven't met Jesus yet—and we've got a role to play. The paralyzed man's friends didn't just hope for healing—they believed Jesus could do it, and they did whatever it took to get their friend in front of Him. That kind of faith and determination made all the difference. So, the question for us is: who needs us to carry them Jesus so He can heal and forgive them?

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#forward #forwardchurchkitchener #churchonline__________________|| GIVE ||To support the ministry of Forward Church and invest into the lives of others, click here: https://forwardchurch.ca/give/__________________Checking us out for the first time? Text "NEW" to (226) 212 7117 or click https://forwardchurch.ca/first-steps/ to let us know you logged in this morning.__________________|| LINKS ||Forward Church - https://forwardchurch.ca/Events and Classes - https://forwardchurch.ca/equip-classes/For Counselling - Text "COUNSEL" to (226) 212 7117Looking for opportunities? Check this out - https://forwardchurch.ca/join-our-team/__________________#churchesoftheworld • #christianity • #christian • #SundayService • #ChurchOnline • #WorshipTogether • #FaithCommunity • #ChurchFamily • #WorshipLive • #PraiseAndWorship • #LiftYourVoice • #GlorifyGod • #WorshipMoments • #GodIsGood • #HopeInChrist • #FaithfulForever • #TrustInHim • #JoinUsLive • #ChurchAtHome • #FaithInAction • #SpiritualGrowth • #CommunityOfBelievers

If we have trusted in Jesus' death on the cross for the forgiveness of our sin. If Jesus has paid the price for us, then Paul tells us our promise from God is as follows: 1. We can walk in newness of life (vs.4) 2. We will be resurrected. (vs.8-9) 3. We are no longer slaves to sin (6-7) 4. We are not subject to the law but recipients of grace (vs.14) On Good Friday, Jesus paid the price to secure all these promises for anyone who believes in him. On Easter Sunday, we celebrate that through the price Jesus paid, we who believe in him, are recipients of these incredible promises. Paul then tells us that the only reasonable response to receiving the new life Jesus gives us is to live like new people: “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, so that you obey its desires. 13 And do not offer any parts of it to sin as weapons for unrighteousness. But as those who are alive from the dead, offer yourselves to God, and all the parts of yourselves to God as weapons for righteousness. 14 For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under the law but under grace.” On Easter Sunday, we celebrate all that God has promised us through Christ, and we are reminded that the resurrection life we have been given through Jesus should cause us to live our lives differently here and now.

News of Jesus has gotten out. The crowds are swelling, wanting to see this man who has the power to heal and cast out demons, this Jesus who speaks with an authority none of them had ever experienced before. And then something truly incredible happens: Jesus withdraws from the crowds who are clamoring for Him and heads elsewhere. Often our greatest moments of testing come, not in moments of failure but in moments of perceived “success.” What allows Jesus to resist the temptation to be drawn into the adulation of the crowds? What allows Him to resist getting comfortable where He is? What allows Him to make a decision that cuts against the grain? It's that He knows His purpose. As Christians, as a church, the temptation to achieve worldly success and adulation will lead us into a failure to live out God's real purpose for us if we don't have clarity on what God's mission and purpose for us truly is.

Luke tells us that as Jesus ministered in Capernaum, people “were astonished because his message had authority.” In this story, Luke gives us a glimpse of the power of Jesus. There is no power or authority greater than Him. As vs.36 tells us, “he commands the unclean spirits with authority and power, and they come out.” If we are in Christ, his power and authority are available to us today. In John 14:14, Jesus tells His disciples, “if you ask anything in my name, I will do it.” To ask in His name is to ask according to His character and will. What confidence it should give us to know that our God and Saviour rules and reigns, that His message and words still have the power today to set people free.

When the gospel is preached, and the Holy Spirit is at work, it causes people to respond. Sometimes that response is positive, as we see in vs. 14 and 15. Sometimes that response is negative, as we see when Jesus returns to Nazareth. This is especially true when it comes to how people respond to who Jesus actually is. It's one thing to be curious about Jesus, to be attracted to the blessing you think Jesus may be able to offer. It's another thing to acknowledge Jesus as king and be willing to offer yourself to Him. As the end of this story shows, though, we can boldly declare the reality of who Jesus is without worrying about how people will respond because at the end of the day, God is in control and sovereign over all, and nothing will happen apart from His good plan.

After his baptism, Jesus heads into the wilderness and fasts for 40 days. Upon completion of 40 days of fasting, the devil appears to tempt him. This passage provides us with an opportunity to show our church both how the devil tempts us and how, like Jesus, we can resist that temptation. Knowing how the devil tempts us is important, so we are prepared when temptation comes our way. First, it may be helpful to note that as human beings, we will be tempted. We should especially expect temptation when God is most active and at work (this story happens right after Jesus' baptism and the Father's public pronouncement of Jesus as the Son) and when we are at our weakest (Jesus has been without food for 40 days in the wilderness). It's also the case that the weapons of the devil in our temptation are lies, which he often disguises in partial truths. Both in the garden of Eden and here in the wilderness, the Devil uses God's own words taken out of their fulness and context to tempt. In order to resist temptation, we need to follow the example of Jesus by fighting Satan's lies with God's truth and rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to strengthen us.

The gospels contain two (very different) genealogies. Both genealogies establish Jesus' Davidic lineage, but while Matthew traces Jesus' ancestry through Solomon, Luke traces it through Nathan. The reason for this discrepancy continues to be debated by scholars. What is even more telling, though, is that while Matthew's genealogy starts with Abraham and traces forward to Jesus, Luke's genealogy starts with Jesus and traces back to Adam. The difference between Luke's genealogy and Matthew's is rooted both in audience and purpose. Luke, writing to a primarily gentile audience, is seeking to show that Jesus is the Saviour and Messiah of all people. Also, in placing His, He now records Jesus' genealogy all the way back to Adam to establish that the Son of God is also the Son of Man, a direct descendant of Adam. Jesus is the fulfillment of the promise made in Genesis 3:15, the one who would crush the head of the serpent under His heel. Jesus is the true and better Adam, as Paul writes to the church in Rome in Romans 5:12-21. Only a true son of Adam and the divine Son of God could be one to serve as the Saviour of all.

In Matthew 28:18-20, we see that disciples of Jesus ought to be baptized just as Jesus was, but why was Jesus baptized? Luke 3:3 tells us that John was “proclaiming a baptism for the forgiveness of sins,” but Jesus had no sins that needed to be forgiven as the sinless Son of God. In Matthew 3:15, we see that Jesus says He is being baptized to “fulfill all righteousness.” This gives us insight into why Jesus would be baptized. First, He is baptized as a symbol of His full obedience to the Father. In this, He sets the example for all His disciples who would come after Him. Second, His baptism by Jesus identifies Him as the one whom John had been preparing the way for. When the heavens open, the Holy Spirit descends, and the Father speaks His approval, we see the public ministry of Jesus inaugurated in a powerful way. Through His baptism, Jesus shows Himself to be our perfect example and our long-awaited Saviour.

Our culture often defines freedom as the absence of rules or responsibilities, but the Bible teaches us that that type of freedom is no freedom at all, instead it is enslavement to sin. In opposition to the world that holds out license as the essence of freedom and religions that seek to burden us with the law and legalism, Jesus calls us into a new way of living where we find the liberty we long for by living under the Lordship of Christ.

While many of us are tempted to find our value, identity, and meaning in our productivity, it's also true that we're also tempted to believe we will find our satisfaction and comfort in consumption. We're constantly fed the lie that what we're longing for will be found if we had “just a little more.” The truth is that ultimately true satisfaction is only found in Jesus, the salvation that is found in Him and also the work that He has called us to. The good news is not just that Jesus has saved us from sin and death but also that He has saved us to a life of purpose and meaning.

There is no such thing as a solo Christian. Coming to Christ means becoming a part of his church. From the very beginning of the church, we see that, although every individual has to make their own decision about who Jesus is, for those who decide to follow Jesus, they are not only joined with Christ, they are joined with everyone else who has claimed Jesus as Saviour and Lord. Our culture of hyper-individualism breeds loneliness, but one of the calling cards of the church ought to be deep community.

There is no such thing as a solo Christian. Coming to Christ means becoming a part of his church. From the very beginning of the church, we see that, although every individual has to make their own decision about who Jesus is, for those who decide to follow Jesus, they are not only joined with Christ, they are joined with everyone else who has claimed Jesus as Saviour and Lord. Our culture of hyper-individualism breeds loneliness, but one of the calling cards of the church ought to be deep community.

One of the most beautiful truths of the gospel is that Jesus died for us “while we were still sinners.” He knew the real us, not some glossy, photoshopped, curated version for us. He knew us completely, even the parts of us that we're terrified anyone else would find out about, and yet He loved us so much He died for us. We live in a world that craves authenticity and yet is awash in a cheap imitation of what it means to be fully known. In the gospel we find the beautiful truth that through Jesus God loves us just as we are AND that He loves us too much to leave us there.

We live in a culture where everything feels up for grabs and change seems to be the only constant. On a macro level in Canada, we have experienced and are continuing to experience huge economic, political, geo-political, technological, and cultural upheaval. On a personal level many people are in the midst of situations that have or will turn their lives as they've known them upside down. We live in uncertain times. And yet, as human beings we have a deep need for certainty. So, is there anything we can be certain of in these uncertain times? Romans 8:31-39 answers that question with a resounding YES! No matter what this world may throw at us, if we are followers of Jesus, we can be certain of God's love for us demonstrated through the death and resurrection of Jesus and his sure and certain victory over sin, Satan, and death. If we plant our feet and put our faith in Jesus we have a certain hope that will not disappoint us.

One of the mind-bending truths of Christianity is that the man Jesus, born of Mary as a baby, who grew up in Nazareth and developed and matured like all humans do, is also the second person of the Trinity, God the Son, creator of all things. This section of scripture helps us see both Jesus' absolute and foundational humanity and His absolute and foundational divinity. Jesus is both the true son of Mary and the true Son of God. Both His humanity and divinity are total, and both are totally necessary for Him to be all that He needed to be to redeem and restore all creation.

Jesus was born a Jew. In fact, He would end up being the ultimate Jew. The only one to ever fulfill completely and fully all the requirements and commands of the Old Covenant and in so doing He would usher in a new covenant by fulfilling the old one. This new covenant through Jesus is the means by which all people, Jews and Gentiles, could become the people of God. This passage is a reminder that Jesus is the centre point of all history and that our future will be determined by how we respond to the redemption He offers.

It's easy to become so familiar with a passage like this that we lose the immensity of what is taking place. In this passage Luke records that the one who is beyond time is born into human history, that the creator of all thing's has stepped into His creation. And what makes this even more startling is the setting. Jesus, God become flesh, enters time and space in anonymity and vulnerability. He's born to a teenage mom and laid in a trough used to feed animals. The entrance into human history does not take place in the halls of power, in the places of prestige and privilege, instead God appears in the most humble and lowly way imaginable. And yet, a birth noted by no one of note at the time, becomes the moment by which all history will end up being divided. Christmas matters because Christ has come and that changes everything.

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The faith of Mary is an example for us. It's marked by humility that demonstrates itself two ways: First, she is surprised that God would grant to her the honor and blessing to be the mother of the Messiah. Second, she is humble enough to take God at His word. It's also marked by a willingness to trust God despite what it might cost her. Having a child out of wedlock was a surefire way to lose her reputation, the husband she is betrothed to and any future moving forward, but she not only believed the words of God, she also believed that God would provide for her. Finally, it's a faith that is marked by hope. She believes her God will not only be her salvation, but that through the child she is bearing He will bring salvation to all His people. Mary provides for us not only an example of the type of faith God honors, but a picture of the people of faith our world desperately needs.

As Luke begins recounting the events leading up to Christ's birth, he starts with a prediction of another birth—that of John the Baptist. John's birth serves as a powerful reminder that God remains faithful to His promises, even when it seems like He's gone silent. John's birth marks the end of the 400-year period of silence in the salvation narrative. It reminds us that even when our prayers seem to fall on deaf ears and our faithfulness goes unnoticed, God is always true and working. He continues to work even when all hope seems lost, when our dreams are dashed, and even when our prayers have become little more than a faint hope. This story calls us to persevere in steady faithfulness, believing that God's promises are reliable and that He often responds when we least expect it.

In the first few verses of his Gospel, Luke wants to make it clear that what he is about to tell us is not myth, fable, or fantasy, but history. The Christian faith is ultimately rooted in history. It's important that we understand that Christianity isn't merely a philosophy or a set of moral teachings. At its core, Christianity is about a real God working out a real plan to really save a people to Himself through the real birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, who really was fully God and fully man. The reason this story is so good is because it's also so true.

When Jesus was asked what the greatest command is, He replied: ““Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the greatest and most important command.” If being a disciple of Jesus is learning to obey all that He commands, then it would seem being a disciple has to start with growing our love for God. The question then is how? How do we grow our love for God? In 1 John 4:10 the apostle John gives us the secret, by growing in our knowledge and understanding of just how much God has loved us! If we are going to grow as disciples who love God, we are going to have to grow in our knowledge of the God who loves us. Most particularly we are going to need to keep our eyes fixed on the cross as the ultimate testament to God's overwhelming love for us.       || GIVE ||To support the ministry of Forward Church and invest into the lives of others, click here: https://forwardchurch.ca/give/________Checking us out for the first time? Text "NEW" to (226) 212 7117 or click https://forwardchurch.ca/first-steps/ to let us know you logged in this morning. ________|| LINKS ||Forward Church - https://forwardchurch.ca/Rewind Podcast -   https://pod.link/forwardrewindåEvents and Classes -  https://forwardchurch.ca/equip-classes/For Counselling - Text "COUNSEL" to (226) 212 7117Looking for opportunities? Check this out - https://forwardchurch.ca/join-our-team/________#churchesoftheworld  #salvation #jesus #churchesinkitchener #churchesincambridge #kitchener #churchesinwaterloo #biblestudy

When Jesus departed the earth to return to the Father he gave tasked His disciples with a mission: “make disciples.” Accomplishing this task would require a few things:  1. It would require going, in fact it would require going to the whole world. Disciple making couldn't be accomplished through passivity it would require initiative and activity. They would need to go out into the world to invite others to follow Jesus.  2. Once people had received the invitation to follow Jesus it would require initiation. A physical washing that would represent the way that through Jesus, His followers have already been washed and made clean.  3. It would require instruction, specifically it would require them teaching to others everything Jesus had taught to them. This teaching was more than just theoretical instruction, it was a call to imitation, a call to step by step learn what it means to walk in the way of Jesus.  4. Finally, it would require the power and presence of Jesus. Jesus knew the task He was leaving them with would only be possible with his help and so He reminded them that His help would be more than enough to accomplish the mission and that His help would always be available to them until the mission was accomplished. The mission He gave His first disciples continues to be our mission today and the promise He made to them continues forward to all those who call themselves His disciples.       Application:  Have you made choice to follow Jesus? If you are a disciple, have you been baptized? If you're a baptized disciple, where do you most need to grow this year in walking in the way of Jesus? Are you a disciple who is making disciples?

There are few things in life that sting as much as the betrayal of a family member.     Families are supposed to be where we find love, support, and connection. Imagine the journey of Joseph. His brothers sold him into slavery and faked his death in order to deceive their father. As a slave, Joseph was falsely accused of sexual assault, thrown in prison, and forgotten there for many years. He would end up in a position of authority during one of the most difficult times in the history of     Egypt. The fallout of the betrayal of his brothers would shape most of his life. Yet somehow, he not only finds the ability to forgive his brothers but he also finds the     ability to bless them. The story of Joseph is the story of when the raw emotions of human betrayal encounter faith in the sovereignty and goodness of God. Forgiving those who have done serious harm to you is only possible when you can look back and see how God has shown mercy to you.