Heritage OPC Sermon Audio

Preacher: Pastor Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 11:20-24Series: The Gospel of Mark The post The Prayer of Faith appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Titus 3:4-7Series: Foundations: Confessing the Faith, Part 23 The post God Saves Sinners appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 11:20-24Series: Thanksgiving 2020 The post Grace and Gratitude appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Ecclesiastes 5:1-7Series: Foundations: Confessing the Faith, Part 22 The post Foundations: Oaths and Vows appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 11:20-24Series: The Gospel of Mark The post The Prayer of Faith appeared first on Heritage.

In this passage, Mark records a day of reckoning, when the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple, looking for fruit. Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 11:12-21Series: The Gospel of Mark The post The Curse of the Fig Tree appeared first on Heritage.

There is a lot of worship confusion today. How should we worship God? Some argue for what is called the normative principle, which means that if God hasn’t forbidden something, it’s fair game to include it in worship. With this view, the sky’s the limit since worship is limited only by your own imagination. But […] The post Foundations: Religious Worship appeared first on Heritage.

This week we saw a tumultuous election. How did you respond? With anxious worry? Or with concerned confidence? In God’s providence, we come to the triumphal entry of King Jesus. As we bear witness to the coming king, may our response be that of those who went before and those who followed him: “Hosanna! Save […] The post The Triumphal Entry appeared first on Heritage.

Tonight we move from the law of God to the liberty of the Christian. As we talk about Christian liberty, there are two potential pitfalls. FIrst, if you deny Christian liberty, you become entangled in legalism. Second, if you affirm Christian liberty in the wrong way, you become entangled in sin. The only way to […] The post Foundations: Christian Liberty appeared first on Heritage.

After darkness … light. Reformation Day marks the anniversary of Martin Luther’s nailing of the 95 Theses. It marks the transition from darkness to light, from spiritual blindness to spiritual sight. In today’s text, the story of blind Bartimeaus illustrates the spiritual blindness of the disciples and illumines the path of discipleship. Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 10:46-52Series: […] The post Blind Bartimaeus appeared first on Heritage.

As we turn to the subject of the 19th chapter in the Westminster Confession, we’ll explore three uses of God’s law in the Christian life: the law as a curb, a mirror, and a guide. In the process, we’ll learn (as Luther did) that “the power to live according to the Law comes from the […] The post Foundations: The Law of God appeared first on Heritage.

We face a crisis of authority, in which leaders misuse their authority either by abdication or tyranny. The purpose of Jesus’ coming reveals a better way: “For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Jesus is the Servant-King. He exercises […] The post The Servant King appeared first on Heritage.

One of the saddest things in the world is a Christian who doesn’t have assurance. As you may know by experience, it’s possible to be saved but not enjoy full assurance of salvation. Possession of salvation and assurance of salvation are not exactly the same thing. That brings us to the subject of the 18th […] The post Foundations: Assurance of Salvation appeared first on Heritage.

Have you ever faced a situation that was so hard you thought it might be impossible? In our text, Jesus has just had a hard conversation with the rich young ruler, which ended in rejection and sadness. This occasion leads Jesus to consider a hard situation: the prospect of a rich man’s entering the kingdom […] The post The Eye of a Needle appeared first on Heritage.

“Jesus loves the little children. All the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white. They are precious in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” This simple song captures the heart of the text before us. Last week we considered marriage and divorce, divorce and remarriage. Here Jesus in […] The post Jesus Loves the Little Children appeared first on Heritage.

St. Francis of Assisi is often reported as having said, “Preach the gospel at all times, and if necessary use words.” Now, from what I can tell, Francis never actually made that statement, but it does express something true: sometimes actions speak louder than words. We all know what this is like. How you vote, […] The post Foundations: Good Works appeared first on Heritage.

Usually we think of fire as an image of destruction. Last week we spoke of hell fire, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. But there is another way of thinking about fire. If you pass a precious metal (like silver or gold) through its flames, something interesting happens. Yes, […] The post Fire and Salt appeared first on Heritage.

Our text is a shocking reminder that no sin, however heinous, is beyond forgiveness, that no sinner, however wayward, is beyond hope … if he repents. That brings us to the subject of the 15th chapter in the Westminster Confession: Repentance unto life. Tonight we’ll explore this doctrine in action in the life of King […] The post Foundations: Repentance unto Life appeared first on Heritage.

What’s the difference between a deacon and an elder? What does a deacon do? What makes someone qualified or disqualified? These are great questions, and tonight I hope to shed biblical light on the office of deacon. With that goal in mind, we will turn to the passage where we encounter deacons for the first […] The post Deacon: The Ministry of Mercy appeared first on Heritage.

“Begin with the end in mind.” Stephen Covey coined this phrase in his famous book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Effective people, according to Covey, begin with the end in mind. In some ways, this is common sense. It’s true if you’re building a house, taking the first steps toward marriage, or writing […] The post Life and Death appeared first on Heritage.

Shakespeare once said, ‘Some are born great,’ ‘Some achieve greatness,’ ‘And some have greatness thrust upon them.’” However it may come, greatness is the theme of our text. Specifically, Who will be the greatest? That is the question posed by the disciples. But it presupposes a deeper question: What does it mean to be great? […] The post Who Will Be the Greatest? appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 9:14-29Series: The Gospel of Mark The post All Things Are Possible appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Romans 6:1-14Series: Foundations: Confessing the Faith, Part 13 The post Foundations: Sanctification appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 6:45-52; Psalm 77:16-20Series: The Gospel of Mark The post The New Exodus appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 9:2-8; 1 Kings 19:11-12Series: The Gospel of Mark The post The Mountain of God appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 8:34-9:1Series: The Gospel of Mark The post The Way of the Cross appeared first on Heritage.

Some say he is a great moral teacher. Others scoff and say he is just another cult leader. Some may say he was a social justice warrior. Mark tells us exactly who Jesus is and what he came to do. He is the Christ, the son of the living God. Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark 8:27-33; […] The post Who Is Jesus? appeared first on Heritage.

Have you ever struggled to understand something? Something that had you stumped. You could see but you couldn’t understand. In today’s text, there is a man who is physically blind. Jesus heals this man but interestedly Jesus does not heal him instantly or completely. The healing is partial and gradual. In this manner, Jesus teaches […] The post Men Like Trees, Walking appeared first on Heritage.

Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Acts 16:13-15Series: Foundations: Confessing the Faith, Part 10 The post Foundations: Effectual Calling appeared first on Heritage.

Free Will. The Westminster Confession has an entire chapter titled “Of Free Will,” so let’s see what the Bible has to say on this matter. Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: John 8:31-36; Eccleciastes 7:27-29Series: Foundations: Confessing the Faith, Part 9 The post Foundations: Free Will appeared first on Heritage.

A Sign From Heaven. Sometimes the road gets tough and we need comfort. Sometimes we are making a mess of things and need to be challenged. In God’s wise and manifold providence, as he unfolds to us his covenant, we learn that God’s covenant is a two-edged sword. God offers life but he also threatens […] The post A Sign From Heaven appeared first on Heritage.

One Loaf Left. Its relatively easy to trust God when things are smooth and life is sweet. But when things get hard and life goes sour, it becomes difficult to entrust ourselves to the Lord. Maybe you’re struggling to trust the Lord today, struggling to entrust your job to him, your children to him, your […] The post One Loaf Left appeared first on Heritage.

Christ the Mediator. Last time in our Foundations series, we saw that we have relationship with God through his covenant. But who mediates God’s covenant? Who represents man before the Lord? How can I come to God? How can I being a miserable sinner stand before the holy and infinite God? The answer is Jesus. […] The post Foundations: Christ the Mediator appeared first on Heritage.

Bread In the Wilderness. In the Old Testament, the wilderness wanderings were an experience that profoundly shaped the identity of God’s people. This was a generation marked by wandering in the wilderness. Do you feel like that generation today? You’re hungry, weak, exhausted, not exactly sure where you’re going. Most of us know something of […] The post Bread in the Wilderness appeared first on Heritage.

All Things Well. Do you ever feel lost in your own world? Maybe during the Coronavirus you’ve felt this way because of the isolation and not being able to interact with people well. For deaf or mute people, there is a whole world they are cut off from. Being deaf and mute, to some degree, […] The post All Things Well appeared first on Heritage.

Nothing is more painful than rejection. It’s painful for a young man to be rejected by a woman. It’s painful for a woman to be rejected by her peers. It’s painful for a father to be rejected by his children. It’s painful especially when you are in trouble and ask for help from a friend […] The post Crumbs Under the Table appeared first on Heritage.

Do you ever feel dirty? Why might that be? Sometimes you just need to take a shower to get clean. But what if the dirt is deeper than that, where doesn’t matter how many times your shower, you still feel dirty because you feel guilty? Maybe its because of things you’ve done or things done […] The post Inside-Out appeared first on Heritage.

Tradition is a powerful shaping influence. But is tradition good or bad? If we keep useful traditions it can give us a sense of identity and continuity of the past. This is a good thing. But it’s bad when we take man made traditions and elevate them to the level of scripture or even worse, […] The post Tradition and Scripture appeared first on Heritage.

One thing is certain. Death. John Milton said that ever since man’s first disobedience, humanity has struggled with the reality that sooner or later, you and I are going to die. It’s the great equalizer. Nothing is more clear than our passage today. Jesus was dead. His disciples grieved because they hoped he was the […] The post The Risen Christ appeared first on Heritage.

What do you think of when you hear the word Coronavirus? If you scroll through social media you will get vastly different answers. Crisis, overreaction, fear, panic, complacency. In this seething cauldron of different opinions, what does it mean to us? The church plays a prophetic role in a time like this and the church […] The post How to Interpret the Coronavirus appeared first on Heritage.

Our text, much like the times we live in, is full of the mystery of the unknown. In this life we are buffeted by the winds of storms. Through it all, we hear the calm and confident voice of Jesus Christ calling us to be of good cheer and not be afraid. In this time […] The post Walking on Water appeared first on Heritage.

Mark described the multitudes that were surrounding Jesus as sheep without a shepherd. Does that phrase describe us today, particularly in a time like this were churches everywhere have shut down due to the Coronavirus. In these trying times, Mark points us to Jesus who is moved with compassion for you. Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark […] The post The Compassionate Shepherd appeared first on Heritage.

Tonight we are going to explore a special act of providence. A link between the doctrines of creation and redemption. Between the first Adam and the last Adam. Between sin and salvation. But first, how can you have a relationship with God? It’s an urgent question. Our confession gives a very concise and helpful answer.  […] The post Foundations: The Covenant appeared first on Heritage.

In light of all that is happening in the world around us, such as the panic from the coronavirus, in God’s providence we have come to the martyrdom of John the Baptist in our text. How does this connect to the death of Christ? What lessons can we, the church, learn? Preacher: Ethan BolyardScripture: Mark […] The post Dance of Death appeared first on Heritage.

If God made the world, and he’s a good God with the world in his hands, then what’s wrong with the world? Terrible realities exist all around us. The problem is sin. Look around you, we live in a world of sin and misery. It’s undeniable. Things are tragically wrong. Let’s look at the doctrine […] The post Foundations: Sin appeared first on Heritage.

The fog of war is when you lose focus and perspective in the midst of a conflict. The fog of being a stay at home mom frazzled by another day of homeschooling. The fog of being a man at work burnt out by another day at the office. The fog of trying to make sense […] The post Kingdom Mission appeared first on Heritage.

Why do things happen the way they do? Why does the earth orbit the sun? Why did Rome fall? Why are babies born? Why do people get cancer? Sometimes we may ask, “why are these things happening to me?” As we consider the doctrine of providence, let Nehemiah help us get a better understanding. Preacher: […] The post Foundations: Providence appeared first on Heritage.

Where did we come from? Everyone likes a good origins story. But none is more pressing than our own. Evolutionists say we emerged from some primordial soup. But God’s Word says something very different. As we explore this historical narrative we learn this one basic truth: God made us to dwell with him in His […] The post Foundations: Creation appeared first on Heritage.

The word homecoming is bittersweet. On one hand it can be sweet to come home. Perhaps after a long business trip or your first semester at college. To come home is a sweet thing, where everything is familiar and feels safe. Where your family and friends greet you at the door. On the other hand, […] The post Homecoming appeared first on Heritage.

As we continue to build upon these foundations, we come now to the question “what is the purpose of life?” Deep within the human heart there is a pulsating desire for meaning, value, and significance. A desire for purpose. And yet when you look at worldly philosophy nothing really matters. We are evolutionary accidents. There […] The post Foundations: God’s Eternal Decrees appeared first on Heritage.

Sin brings death and death brings fear and sorrow. People are afraid, if not by death itself, by the process of dying. Wordly wisdom tries to dilute this fear and comfort us by saying that death is a part of life. But when parents stand over the graves of their children, worldly wisdom rings hollow. […] The post Recalled to Life appeared first on Heritage.