Grace Fellowship Church

Closing Thought: There is a day coming when every one of us will stand before Jesus Christ. For those outside of Christ, it will be a day of righteous judgment. For those in Christ, it will be a day of joyful vindication, because the verdict was secured at the cross. Therefore, do not live in fear. Rest in the perfect love of God displayed in His Son and let that confidence free you to love one another. God's perfected love produces both confidence before Christ and a life that increasingly resembles Christ in how we love the brethren.

Closing Thought: Beloved, the greatest evidence that God has loved you is not merely that you can explain the gospel, but that the gospel is changing the way you love His people. God's love did not stop at the cross; it continues through the lives of those who have been united to Christ. So let the love that came down from heaven flow through you to the brethren. Loved By God, Loving One Another.

Closing Thought: Beloved, you must think critically for yourselves pertaining to spiritual truth. Your pastors and your parents cannot do this thinking for you. There are many deceivers and pretenders who come directly from Satan and wish to lead you into spiritual destruction. You will test and know them by what they say about Jesus Christ- both who he is, and how He comes to live in you. It is God who saves you through the God man Jesus Christ, and it is God who lives in you by the Holy Spirit. Listen to God's word and you will be able to determine the spirit of truth from the spirit of error.

While crosswalking on the corner of Marquette and Locust, home of Whitey's Ice Cream, two young ladies approached to encourage me. They were soon joined by three young men. One of the young men, with a troubled tone in his voice, told me he needed to be saved. I hope this conversation encourages you.

Closing Thought: Beloved, assurance is not presumption, and doubt is not always humility. God gives assurance for the accused heart, not by telling us to ignore sin, but by calling us to bring our hearts before Him. So, when your heart condemns you, do not make your heart the highest court. If there is sin, confess it; if there is false accusation, reject it; and in both cases, bring your heart before the God who is greater than your heart, rest in Christ who answers every accusation, walk in His commands, love the brethren, and trust the Spirit whom He has given.

While crosswalking outside the Scott County Courthouse and Jail, in Davenport (IA), Tony had a lengthy conversation with a young man named Ty. Along the way, Tony explained to Ty what every false religion has in common and it's as old as Satan deception of Eve in the garden.

Closing Thought: Beloved, God puts great emphasis on loving the brethren because love is one of the clearest pieces of evidence that we have passed from death to life. Christ laid down His life for us and showed us what love truly is. So let us not love selectively, or in word and talk only. Let us love one another… actually: in deed and in truth, laying down our lives in ordinary, costly, Christlike ways. Amen?

Closing Thought: Beloved, sin is lawlessness, and the devil has been sinning from the beginning; but the Son of God appeared to take away sins, destroy the works of the devil, and make sinners children of God. So do not make peace with the sin Christ came to destroy, or cling to what He came to deliver you from. If you have been born of God, let the family resemblance be seen: practice righteousness, love the brethren, and say with the heart of a child of God, "I have plenty; all I need is Christ." But if your heart still says, "I want more and more of what my flesh, my eyes, and my pride want," then hear the call of the gospel: turn from your sin, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and become a child of God.

Closing Thought: Beloved, because we have been born of the righteous God and made His beloved children, we practice righteousness now, we endure and embrace the world's misunderstanding, we hope in Christ's return, and we pursue purity until we are made like Him. Amen?

Closing Thought: Beloved, it is the last hour. Deceivers are real. Lies about Christ are deadly. But you do not need a newer gospel, a deeper secret, or a more impressive Christ. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. Confess the Son. Trust the Spirit's anointing. Abide in Him now, so that when He appears, you may have confidence and not shrink from Him in shame.

Beloved, the world is passing away. Its pleasures are passing away. Its pride is passing away. Its applause is passing away. Its lusts are passing away. But the one who does the will of God abides forever. So, do not give your heart to what is dying. Give yourself to the Father, through the Son, by the Spirit, and live for what will never pass away.

Closing Thought: Beloved, the path of spiritual growth is beautiful: all God's children stand on the same foundation, that their sins are forgiven for Christ's sake. From there, grace matures in different ways — the child rejoices in sonship, the young man grows strong in truth, and the father ripens in the wisdom of deeply knowing God Himself. So do not settle into complacency but press on in grace. And yet remember this as well: growth will not look the same in every believer. Some will always retain something of a more childlike warmth and simplicity of faith, and that is no defect. The goal is not to lose that childlike trust, but to see it deepened, steadied, and matured in Christ.

Closing Thought: Beloved, John writes so that we may have assurance, but also to remind us that such assurance can never be divorced from love for God's people. The true light is already shining, and where Christ truly rules, His love will increasingly be given through His people to His people.

Closing Thought: John writes to give believers assurance, but never an assurance divorced from Christ or from obedience. Real assurance begins by looking to Christ. Real knowledge of Christ produces a real keeping of His Word and a real likeness to His life.

Closing Thought: Beloved Brethren, John writes first to make us take sin seriously and turn from it on purpose, never making peace with it, believing that the power of Christ is enough to help us fight it and forsake it. Then he writes to keep us from despair when we do sin by fixing our eyes on Jesus Christ the righteous, our Advocate with the Father and the propitiation for our sins.

Closing Thought: Beloved brethren, let us not be driven to despair over our sin, but to be drawn out of denial, into the light, and into the honest, cleansed, joyful fellowship with God that is ours through Jesus Christ.

Closing Thought: John writes to draw us into the shared life of the gospel; into true fellowship with the Father through His Son Jesus Christ, into real fellowship with one another, and into the deep joy we are meant to know as we walk together in that life. Are you walking in this fellowship with great joy?

Closing Thought: God does not want His church guessing; He wants them knowing. Therefore, John asks three questions: Do I believe in the true Christ? Am I growing in obedience? Do I love God's people?

Closing Thought: In Adam, death reigns. In Christ, death is defeated. And one day, Death itself will be destroyed. The grave will give up its dead. And what follows will not be death, but eternal life or eternal judgement.

Final Thought: Christian, you have been given a new nature united to God by His Holy Spirit and that is Jesus Christ living and dwelling in you. Let the truth of Christs crucifixion and death define how you think about your old sinful nature. Let the truth of Christ's resurrection define your new nature in Christ today. Your new self is now united to the incorruptible and divine nature and is powered by the word of God and prayer. Surrender your self, mind, heart, soul, thoughts, desires, passions, emotions, and will to be at peace within your inner man united and conformed to who Christ is in you. Control your body, fleshly desires, lusts, emotions, decisions, words, and actions by restraining them and bringing them under the dominion of Christ by His power within you. May the world see the walls of self-control as Jesus Christ living in us, to the Praise of His Glory!

Final Thought: The man with no self-control lives enslaved to his own sinful passions and desires, no matter how under control he appears to be. Don't be deceived, to serve our sinful self is to serve Satan himself and to be headed towards an eternal "Jericho" of destruction under the wrath of God. Jesus Christ came to rescue a people from slavery to sin, to recreate them inwardly, and to live in, and with, and through the--even now in this life, and perfectly forever in eternity. It is only by faith IN Christ that we can be free to have true self-control.

Closing Thought: Church, we keep ourselves in the love of God because God is keeping us by His power. And as we contend for the faith, we do so knowing that one day He will present us before His glory with great joy.

Closing Thought:Peter's final command is simple but profound: do not drift, grow. The Christian life is sustained not by spiritual autopilot but by continual dependence on Christ through His Word. Stability comes from being anchored in truth, and maturity comes from knowing Jesus more deeply. As we wait for the coming Day, we must guard our hearts from error and pursue growth in grace. In all of this, the goal remains the same: to bring glory to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ both now and to the day of eternity.

The Day is certain, and when it comes you will be found. The decisive question will not be how impressive your life appeared, but whether you are found in Christ; clothed in His righteousness, at peace through His blood, and living in a way that reflects that union. The patience of God you are experiencing right now is mercy, giving space for repentance and faith and fueling our mission of reconciliation. So be diligent: rest in Christ alone, fight sin earnestly, pursue peace sincerely, and live in light of the coming Day. When that Day comes, how will you be found? May you be found spotless in the Spotless Lamb and at peace before God.

Because this present world is passing away, do not give your heart to it as though it were permanent. Christ has already borne the judgement that was coming for you, and He has secured a kingdom that cannot be shaken. You are not waiting for wrath, you are waiting for renewal. So live as citizens of the world to come. Let the certainty of His return loosen your grip on what is temporary, steady your soul in a restless age, and stir you to holiness. The King is coming, and He is preparing you for a world in which righteousness dwells.

We are living in the silence of God's patience. The Lord who stands outside of time has fixed a day for Jesus's return into time. It is appointed; settled; immovable. Christ is reigning now, and He is not waiting on world events or human progress. He is gathering every one of His sheep. Not one will be missing--not one overlooked. When the very last elect sinner is brought to repentance, when the final heart is broking and the final name written in the Lamb's Book of Life believes, that will be it. God's patience will have accomplished its purpose. Then suddenly and decisively, the Day of the Lord will come. The heavens will roar; the fire will fall; the silence will end. Do not mistake delay for safety. The only reason judgment has not already come is because mercy is still at work. But when mercy has gathered the last of Christ's own, patience will give way to glory and judgment, at once. Therefore, be sure you are in Christ, because when the last sheep comes home, the door will be shut.

Closing Thought: The Lord knows. He knows how to rescue the righteous, and He knows how to judge false teachers whose end is destruction. Therefore we must be alert and discerning, recognizing false teachers by their fruit, rejecting their false teaching, and avoiding their influence rather than following them into eternal ruin. And because we trust that God will save His people, we will give careful attention to the Word of God, the Scriptures, the Bible, the faith once delivered to all the saints.

Closing Thought: There is nothing new under the sun. False prophets and false teachers have always been among God's people from the false prophets of the Old Testament, to the Pharisees in Jesus' day, to the Judaizers of the first century, to false teachers today. Their end is destruction. We must know the truth, lest we follow their lies straight to hell.

This message was presented during the 2026 annual End Abortion Iowa conference. While the law can restrain it cannot raise the dead. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can do both.

Closing Thought: The majesty of Christ, once revealed and confirmed by eyewitnesses, is now permanently secured for us, beloved, in the Spirit-inspired Scriptures, which point us to Him and comfort us until His return in power and great glory.

Closing Thought: God sanctifies His people by stirring them up through the preaching of His Word. Through repeated reminders and truth remembered, He continually awakens us to live holy lives in preparation for the day we stand before Him. To be stirred up again and again is not a burden, nor is it to be despised. It is God's gracious mercy for which we ought to be thankful.

Today, Grace Fellowship Church, of Davenport, IA, commended and sent 11 members of the church and their families to plant a new church in West Liberty, IA.

Closing Thought: Because God's grace has made us partakers of the divine nature and supplied everything we need for a holy life, Peter calls us to make every effort to work out the new life we have received in Christ. We do this by deliberately developing the qualities we have been given through him and that he lived out perfectly in his earthly life. And if our lives appear ineffective or unfruitful, the remedy is not passivity or despair, but renewed diligence in supplementing the faith God has graciously given us. So, by the grace of God and to the glory of Christ; Let's go to work!

Closing Thought: God's divine power has called us by the glory and excellence of Christ Jesus. He has given us precious and very great promises, and through those promises has brought us into His life even now, freeing us from the corruption of sinful desire and producing real godliness. Therefore, holiness is neither self-made nor optional: it is the gracious outworking of God's power in us now and the sure pathway to the glory that awaits us.

Closing Thought: Beloved, the faith we have obtained is the same faith given to the apostles, equal in standing and precious in worth. And by that faith we grow in the knowledge of our God and Savior Jesus Christ, so that grace and peace may be multiplied in our lives. Amen.

Closing Thought: Finally, stand firm in the true grace of God. And remember, you are not alone, you are one of His chosen, called to persevere in holiness, love, and peace.

Closing Thought: Though our temporal suffering is real and painful, it will last only for the snap of a finger. In contrast, the glory God has promised us in Christ is eternal. He promises to restore, strengthen, and establish us, and His absolute sovereignty assures that these promises will be fulfilled. Let us therefore endure the trials of this life in hope, knowing that what is brief and painful now cannot compare to the eternal weight of glory that awaits those who are in Christ Jesus.

During his pre-sermon, which included a brief exposition of Psalm 51, Pastor Mike addressed those in the congregation who are yet unconverted, troubled by their sin, and "trying" to be saved.

Closing Thought: It is true concerning your sufferings, dear brethren, that God's got this and He's got you too. But do not think irrationally: Satan is real and intent on swallowing you up, so watch out. He will use people and your own desires to lure you into sin. This is the Christian life; it has always been this way, and it will remain so until Christ returns. When suffering, do not run; stand firm in the faith, remember that God is in control, and trust Him.

Closing Thought: As God's people (elect exiles, royal priesthood, holy nation, Christians) whatever trials we face we must remember these two facts: 1) God is in complete control over all that is happening to us and around us. 2) God is preparing us for glory, and He cares for us. Dear Christian, if you are suffering or facing a trial, and anxiety and worry grip your heart, remember; GOD'S GOT THIS AND HE'S GOT YOU!!!!

Closing Thought: When persecution, reviling, or suffering come, God's people are tempted to forget His design for His holy nation. At all times—especially during these trials—we must remember God's order: elders are to shepherd the flock of God willingly, eagerly, and by setting a godly example. Members of the assembly who are not elders are called to submit themselves to their elders' oversight. If you want to set God against you, treat His people as less important or inferior to yourself. But if you want God to show you His gracious kindness, tie on the slave's apron and serve His people intentionally, valuing them as much and more than yourself.

Closing Thought: Make no mistake Christians, like all Christians in all times, we are going to suffer for our faith. So, for what should we suffer? - Doing good. And what should we do while we suffer? - Entrust our souls to a faithful Creator. Pretty straightforward. So Beloved, let's go live as Christians in a place that is not our home.

Tony spoke to the men at Christ Fellowship Bible Church (St. Louis), during the Men's Bible Study, on the topic of biblical evangelism. A brief Q&A followed.

Final Thought: The pursuit or aim of the Christian life is Jesus Christ and His revealing. We are to live our days disciplining our minds and focusing our thoughts upon God and His truth in prayerful dependence. We are to love one another with everything we have even when we are met with sin, indifference, rejection, or opposition. We must love just as Christ has loved us as we demonstrate our love to Him by the way we love His bride. We are each to uniquely serve the body of Christ by His strength, in everything, and for His glory.

Closing Thought: Beloved, as those baptized into Christ, we now have no penalty for our sin, we have power over sin through His Spirit, and at death we will be fully freed from the presence of sin. Therefore, let us be armed for asceticism, living in disciplined love for Christ and His glory and prepared for the battle of holiness. Now, to those who have not yet trusted Him: today is the day to turn from your sin, receive Christ's forgiveness, and be joined to Him — that you too might be alive in the spirit, prepared to die in the flesh.

Closing Thought: Beloved, the main thing is this: Jesus' suffering had great purpose, for in it He triumphed over sin and death and made a way to bring us to God. Because of His suffering, we have been saved by our baptism into Him. Now that we are in Christ, we have been called to be prepared to suffer for doing good, just as Jesus did. Our suffering shapes us to be more like Him and, while it will not save others, it will affirm the Gospel we proclaim and may bring them to salvation.