Laughlin Community Church

Introduction Most people own at least one Bible. Many own several. We have study Bibles, phone apps, podcasts, YouTube sermons, commentaries, Bible studies, conferences, and endless Christian content. Yet America has never had more access to Scripture while looking less like Christ. James asks a very…

Yaaqov's Blessing on His Twelve Sons We're gonna move into Genesis 49 now, and this is the moment where Yaaqov is going to bring together not just Yoseph and his sons, but all of the tribes. We are moving into part two of the center of the third and final act of the Yoseph story. And this chapter is…

Introduction One of the oldest questions people ask is this: "Why did I do that?" Have you ever found yourself saying: "I knew it was wrong." "I promised I'd never do it again." "I don't know what came over me." Whenever we fail spiritually, we naturally look for someone else to blame. Adam blamed Eve.…

Ephraim and Manasseh In verse 10 of chapter 48, about how his eyes are not working very great, he can't see very well. And you're like, "Wait a minute, wait a minute." So we're recalling Isaac's nearly blind eyes. He was in his tent, he thought he was about to die. And this is the moment where Yaaqov…

James 1:5-11 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not…

Jacob Blesses Joseph's Sons We are about to get to the center of the final act, which is where we're gonna find a bunch of blessings and even a curse. And what we're gonna do is set the stage for the blessings at the center here with matching stories that are on either side of them, which is about Yaaqov…

Introduction Today we begin a journey through one of the most practical books in all of Scripture. The Book of James has often been called the Proverbs of the New Testament because it deals with everyday Christianity. It addresses suffering, temptation, wisdom, speech, favoritism, prayer, money, and…

Joseph Leads Egypt Through a Famine 12 And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father's family with food for their dependents. 13 But there was no food in the entire region, for the famine was very severe. The land of Egypt and the land of Canaan were exhausted by the famine. 14 Joseph…

Jacob's Journey to Egypt We just finished the second act of the story of Yoseph and his brothers. The brothers have reconciled. The seven rounds of hostility in the Genesis scroll have been inverted and reconciled with this scene that we just read in the previous session. Remember the plot conflict between…

Introduction We live in a culture built on dissatisfaction. Advertising constantly tells us: You need more. You deserve better. You are missing out. Happiness is just one purchase, promotion, relationship, or experience away. Yet despite having more than any generation in history, people are often anxious,…

Reconciliation of the Brothers The long speech of Judah that we just read is going to be matched by a long speech of his brother Yoseph. And that speech is gonna begin the final third of the second act. In Joseph's speech, he's going to talk about how, "Hey, I think Elohim was, like, behind all of this…

Judah's Offering 26 When Joseph came home, they brought him the gift they had carried into the house, and they bowed to the ground before him. 27 He asked if they were well, and he said, “How is your elderly father that you told me about? Is he still alive?” 28 They answered, “Your servant our father…

The Crisis Nobody Is Talking About There is a mental health crisis in our world today. Depression. Anxiety. Burnout. Hopelessness. 1 in 5 adults in the United States will experience a diagnosable mental health condition this year. And the church — our church — is not exempt. People are sitting in our…

The Brothers Return to Egypt We are gonna walk into the center of the center of the story of Yoseph and his brothers. This large section is the center of the center of the story of Yoseph and his brothers. It consists of three larger units ( Gen. 43:1-15 , 43:15-44:13 , and 44:14-34) designed as a symmetry.…

This year marks an historic moment in our nation's story. Two hundred and fifty years ago, a declaration was signed that changed the course of history. A group of men declared that liberty was worth the cost, that tyranny should be resisted, and that human rights came not from government, but from our…

How many of you still remember a song from Vacation Bible School? Maybe you remember the motions. Maybe you remember a memory verse. Maybe you remember the cookies, the crafts, or the awkward skits. But for many people, VBS became much more than a childhood memory. For some, it was the first time they…

Jacob's Lost Sons We're just gonna pick up in verse 21 and a whole new network. Think what happens after the test in the Eden story? Think through the sequence in early Genesis stories, and then the sequence of what's happening here. 21 Then they said to each other, “Obviously, we are being punished…

The Brothers Go Down to Egypt Last session, The suffering chosen one goes down into what everybody else thinks is death, but Yahweh is with him. He rescues him, raises him up through uncanny circumstances to become an image of Pharaoh ruling over the land with the wisdom of God. And there's life and…

Introduction: Where Do You Belong? Every person lives out of a sense of identity. Where you believe you belong determines how you live. If you see yourself primarily as: an American, you live for this nation a professional, you live for success a consumer, you live for comfort But Paul says something…

Introduction Father's Day is a time when we think about the influence of fathers. Some of us were blessed with wonderful examples. Others grew up without a father present. Some experienced fathers who tried their best but fell short. The truth is that fatherhood carries tremendous influence. Whether…

Dreamers in Prison 1 After this, the king of Egypt's cupbearer and baker offended their master, the king of Egypt. 2 Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3 and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guards in the prison where Joseph was confined.…

In every area of life, examples matter. Athletes study great athletes. Students imitate great teachers. Children imitate their parents. Whether we realize it or not, we are always following someone. That is why Paul begins this passage with a call to imitation. the Christian life is often caught before…

Mature Conduct In the Christian life, one of the easiest traps to fall into is thinking we have already arrived. Some believers think maturity means they have reached a point where they no longer need correction. Others think maturity means they already understand everything important about the Christian…

Deceiving the Deceiver We got to verse 16 but because its been a couple of weeks lets go back and review from verse 12 12 After a long time Judah's wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had finished mourning, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers. 13 Tamar…

Introduction Sometimes we assume that the apostle Paul lived on a completely different spiritual level than the rest of us. We imagine him as a kind of spiritual giant who had already figured everything out. If anyone had “arrived,” surely it was Paul. But in Philippians 3 , Paul shatters that assumption.…

Judah and Tamar This story, for many people, when you read it, you're just like, "What is this doing here?" And that is on purpose. It's a riddle. And the more you meditate on it and the more you meditate on the relationship between the shared words and images with the narratives on either side, backwards…

Introduction: A Command and a Warning As Paul turns into chapter 3 of Philippians, he writes, “Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord.” That word “finally” does not mean he is finished. It signals a shift. He is moving from the example of Christ's humility in chapter 2 to a serious warning in chapter…

Down Into the Pit The scene that we were just in was about how Joseph is betrayed by all the brothers, including Abraham's other sons, but especially Judah, that snake, and his really self-oriented betrayal of his brother. He's after a quick 20 shekels. We're gonna pick up in verse 29 and shift back…

Introduction Mother's Day can stir up many emotions. For some, it is a day of gratitude and celebration. For others, it carries grief, loss, longing, or complicated memories. Some are exhausted in the middle of parenting. Some are praying for children who have wandered. Some are grieving children they…

A Man in the Field 12 His brothers had gone to pasture their father's flocks at Shechem. 13 Israel said to Joseph, “Your brothers, you know, are pasturing the flocks at Shechem. Get ready. I'm sending you to them.” “I'm ready,” Joseph replied. 14 Then Israel said to him, “Go and see how your brothers…

Joseph's Dream Today is the story about his dreams, his robe, the brothers becoming angry like Cain, doing something to their brother that will result in a robe deception, and that's the arc of the chapter. 2 These are the records of the generations of Jacob. Joseph , when seventeen years of age, was…

Introduction: From Theology to People Paul has just taken us to the heights of Christ's humility. We have seen the Son who emptied Himself, took the form of a servant, and became obedient to the point of death. Now Paul shifts from theology to personnel. At first glance, verses 19 to 30 can feel like…

Introduction to The Joseph Story So we're gonna overview in this first session. And we are going to do some review. Remind ourselves what are you supposed to already know walking into the story of Joseph and his brothers? The story of Joseph and his brothers. These are the 12 sons of Jacob, who is the…

Introduction: Salvation That Shows Paul has just given us the great hymn of Christ's humility. Jesus humbled Himself, became obedient to death, even death on a cross. Then Paul turns and says, “Therefore.” Because of Christ's obedience, because of His humility, because of what God has done through Him,…

Jacob and Esau Part Ways Today we are gonna read the conclusion of the Yaaqov story. This final part of the final act. It began with Yaaqov going back to the place where he began his journey in and out of exile to Bethel. He got a new name. He got the blessing, the prediction of kings of many nations.…

Introduction: The Way Down Is the Way Forward Most of us spend a lot of energy protecting our place. Our reputation. Our rights. Our sense of being noticed or appreciated. We may not say it out loud, but we feel it when we are overlooked, when someone else gets the credit, or when serving costs more…

Introduction Good morning, and happy Easter. Easter is one of those days that comes with a lot of expectations. The room is fuller. The songs are louder. The story is familiar. And yet, when you slow down and actually read the resurrection story, especially in the Gospel of John, you notice something…

The Death of Rachel and Isaac The last section was a bright spot in a pretty dark tunnel up to that point. We go back into the land, the family purifies itself, Yaaqov introduces his whole family to the Elohim that has been with him all along. And they leave behind their pagan identities of old to embrace…

Introduction: The Soil Where Joy Grows Paul's letter to the Philippians is saturated with joy, but that joy is never detached from how believers treat one another. As Paul turns to Philippians 2 , he addresses a quiet threat to the church's joy, not persecution from outside, but self-centeredness within.…

Jacob Returns to Bethel We are wrapping things up. And interestingly, that is how all of these sections start to feel, like we're wrapping up unresolved threads from earlier in the story in really interesting ways. third and final section makes up most of what we call Genesis 35 and 36. And the first…

Introduction: One Command That Shapes the Whole Church After opening his letter with thanksgiving and prayer, Paul spends much of Philippians 1:12–26 describing his own situation. He writes from prison, uncertain whether his future holds release or death. Yet his concern is not self preservation. His…

Jacob's Silence We've pondered how the story began. Highly disturbing. We have Shechem, the son of Hamor, who abuses his exalted position to see, take, and rape one of the daughters of a migrant family that just came into the area and bought new property. So we took a long time, and rightfully so, to…

The Oppression of Dinah We are coming to the center of the third act of the Yaaqov story. It's not a happy story. It's highly disturbing, and it's gonna repeat patterns that we have seen at the center of the other two acts. Recall that in the first act, you had the story of the twins and deceptions as…

Introduction: A Statement That Reorients Everything Few sentences in Scripture are as concise and as demanding as Paul's words in Philippians 1:21 : “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” This is not a poetic flourish or a slogan for difficult times. Paul is not writing from comfort or security.…

The Reunion of Jacob and Esau We have the sending of messengers to Esau. He's coming with 400 men. We have the wrestling with God, seeing him face to face. Yaaqov is now the wounded servant. But he has the blessing, he has the blessing of God. The blessing of God is a dangerous thing to one's own health.…