Mosaic Knox - Sermons & Messages

Sermon from Sunday, February 16th, 2025 | Jonah | Running From God -- We all think we know the story of Jonah, but that's because our imagination has been shaped by the story of the whale. What if Jonah has nothing to do with a fish? What if the shortest, most sophisticated piece of literary satire in the library of Scripture is more like a mirror than a fable? What if the story is primarily about the surprising, and often frustratingly mysterious, mercy of God?

Sermon from Sunday, February 2, 2025 | Co-Mission | Life in the Spirit -- When we consider life on mission, our first impulse is to think, 'What should I do? But we are not the subject of the mission; God is. A better starting point might be to consider, 'What is God doing, and in what way is God doing it?'

Sermon from Sunday, January 19th, 2025 | Community | Knowing One Another -- It is easy and simple to love a stranger. Most of us do not struggle with random acts of kindness; much more of us struggle to love those we know. Out of fear or previous pain, our natural inclination is to draw away from one another because we know that love comes at a cost; and love comes with knowing one another's pain, sin, suffering. Yet, Jesus made a promise -- the one sure way the world will know you are mine is by your love for one another.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from Sunday, January 5th, 2025 | Communion | The Love of God -- What is the sign that God is at work in your life? Is it you being healed by God from something, a prophetic word spoken to you, or deliverance from an on-going addiction or crisis? Or is it your ability to walk around everyday with the audacious belief that you are truly loved by God?

Sermon from Sunday, December 15, 2024 | We speak of the two Advents this time of year, God's first and second coming. But what about the third Advent, the one we desperately long for in the ordinary days of our lives? What about the darkness, the waiting and the pain of the everyday experience of our painful and frayed lives? The God that was born in a cave, and is coming back on a horse -- longs to meet us, here and now.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org.

Sermon from Sunday, December 1, 2024 | God With Us | You're Not Great at Receiving | God came not first to show us something, but to give us someone. We do not receive naturally. We would much rather prove we are worth something to someone than be loved despite our doing. And that is exactly the premise of Advent; there is nothing one can do to be born. And there is nothing one can do to be loved except the one thing we are all allergic to -- receiving it.

Sermon from Sunday, November 17, 2024 | Hospitality | Practicing the Priesthood | As we wrap up our series on Hospitality, we end by discussing the role of the priesthood. In the Old Testament, priests represented the people of God to the God of the people. Now, though, that same God inhabits his people in a new and profound way. What does it practically look like to be a church that is open-handed to what God has for them? Might it be as simple as this: receiving the strength to encourage and prophecy.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org.

Sermon from Sunday, November 3, 2024 | Hospitality | God's Preferred Method and Unlikely Guests |The method of Jesus' ministry was as subversive as it was revolutionary. What startled and confused and frustrated the religious caste system of his day was as much his message as it was his intended audience. Jesus makes insiders outsiders, and outsiders insiders. He – the center and the One who holds the universe by his very breath – moves to the margins; and he moves the margins – those who would never think to have a seat at the table – right to the center.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org.

Sermon from October 20, 2024 | Hospitality | Jesus's Most Subversive Idea | Jesus said things that rubbed some people the wrong way, but his most radical idea remains deeply controversial for all people - his call to enemy-love. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org.

October 6, 2024 | Hospitality | People of God: From Genesis to Revelation, the journey is about being in the presence of God. Becoming people of hospitality means being formed by being close to Him and one another. We are the living temple, the place where God's Spirit lives, and it is from that place that we are the welcome mat of God to our community. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org.

Sermon from Sunday, September 29, 2024 | Hospitality | Welcome of God: Hospitality is a fundamental practice in following Jesus, but before we begin to explore the in's and out's of this way of life, we are first invited to the table ourselves, where Jesus is the host welcoming us in. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org. 

Stand-Alone Sermon from September 15, 2024 | The First Two Questions God Asks | When it comes to being human, our natural instinct is to hide, namely out of fear and self-preservation. And that isn't wrong; we just end up hiding in the wrong place. So, where can we hide where we experience the safety and the healing we long for? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org. 

Sermon from September 1, 2024 | Philippians 3 | Body | Do our bodies matter? That's the question we look at this week. What does it mean for us that God not only created bodies, but took on a body? To fully step into our faith, we have to fully embrace that we are embodied creatures. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from August 18, 2024 | Philippians 3 | Mission | Whether chained in Rome, or living in a neighborhood in the South, the invitation is to live as holy contradictions. What posture must we take toward our culture to live in such a way that heaven is brought to life in us, for the sake of others? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.orgSermon Excerpt: "The world is both full of darkness and light; beauty and brokenness. Some of you have looked that brokenness in the eye this week. To have one foot in this world, and one foot in the other, means that I am not going to bypass the significant and serious pain that this world offers so frequently and unashamedly. Grieve it. There is no life without grief. And to have one foot in this world and one foot in the other means that I'm not afraid to die here, because I am a citizen of another kingdom; but maybe – just as importantly – I'm also not afraid to live here. To live life, fully, to the tilt, being present in moments with my kids, waking up an hour earlier to pray, taking risks I would have never taken, enjoying the life I have rather than the life I want, because God is not in the life I want, but the life I have. Jesus is not offering us a nice place to go when we've stopped breathing; he's offering to be thenew breath in our lungs to make us come fully alive."

Sermon from August 4, 2024 | Philippians 3 | Imitation | When we start following Jesus, our initial response is typically inspiration that leads to excitement. This is the power of God at work in our lives. But, what does it mean when the infatuation stage wears off? Is there something even more dynamic than the power of God? This week we look into Paul's invitation to imitate God, not merely encounter Him. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from July 21, 2024 | Philippians 3 | Power | Our entire faith is centered around Holy Week. But the events of Holy Week are not merely one-time events, but the framework for we live everyday. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from July 7, 2024 | Philippians 3 | Joy | Cynicism captures the spirit of our age; and there's much in the world to be cynical about. But what if our current circumstances are not what defines our posture? What if instead we were anchored in something altogether different, something like defiant joy? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from Sunday, June 16, 2024  | That You May Live: The Fire Burning Within | We round out our Ten Commandment series with the offense that is always there, but hard to detect -- the ever-present desire. What desires do we have that we are aware of; and how might we live a life that moves toward a life of contentment?For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www. MosaicKnox.org/

Sermon from Sunday, June 2, 2024 | That You May Live: The Blessing and Cursing of Words | The previous three commandments were fairly simple and straightforward. But why does this commandment actually involve our neighbor? And of all the ways to image Jesus, the most personal and intimate way might be refraining from speaking.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from Sunday, May 19, 2024 | Most of us don't steal from people, in the stereotypical sense. But what if the way of Jesus goes beyond robbing banks and embezzling money? Jesus calls us to much more than keeping our criminal history clean, and many of us may be more familiar with theft than we think. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org/

Sermon from Sunday, May 5, 2024 | God created us, which means God hates when any one of us is objectfied. At the heart of the seventh commandment is this: your neighbor is not an object. The words and ways of Jesus stand against objectifying my neighbor. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from Sunday, April 21, 2024 | "Do not commit murder," sounds simple enough; but are we aware of the small seeds growing in our heart where we view people as worthless? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from Sunday, April 7, 2024 | Most of us are marked by some parental wound. So, what does it look like to honor those who we are so relationally tied to, and yet from whom we experience a void?  The invitation most of us know is the one most of us spurn -- honoring those whose wounds we carry.  For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

On Easter Sunday, we reflect on the theme of our entire lives: how beauty will save the world. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from Sunday, March 3, 2024 | God has a name (and it's not 'God.') So, what is His Name? And how do we misuse it and misrepresent Him in such a way that His name is emptied of any power in our world? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

| Each of us has that nagging question; what does God look like? But that might not be the right question. The second word prohibits us from making images that represent God precisely because it cannot be done. But just because we're unsure what God looks like doesn't mean we can't know what we sounds like. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from February 4, 2024 | For next several months, we are going to enter into what are known as the “Ten Words” or the Ten Commandments. The ancient Law given to the people of God has something for us, in 2024. How might we re-oreint our desires and loves for the sake of God and his kingdom? The first commandment is first for a reason: God requires undivided allegiance. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from January 7, 2024 | God is doing a new thing in us, and He's inviting us into deeper faith, and a better story. Crossing the Jordan River is an inflection point in the story of the Israelites; and it's also an inflection point for us. Lean in as we ready ourselves for God's new work among us. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from December 3, 2023 | We would think that if God were to enter the world, he would come in the most unbelievable of ways. This, of course, makes his arrival on Earth all the more astounding. The long-awaited King came in a highly believable way, to easily discredited people, in the least ideal of circumstances. Why? Because that's where we are, and that's who we are. The inconceivability of Advent is that God chose to play by the harsh rules of earth, and bring heaven all the way down. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from November 19, 2023 | Ultimately, the desire for our life can be summed up in one word: “shalom.” In concluding our series on Vocation, Kyle Pickell breaks down what shalom is, and how we might join God in the work He is doing in our little corner of the world. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Sermon from November 5, 2023 | In a world that cares about the bottom line of metric of up-and-to-the right, the story God writes for the world is counter-intuitive. What does it mean to be a human "being," rather than a human "doer." How might we root ourselves in rest and resistance, and not a slave to the machine and the story of futility? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.MosaicKnox.org

Message from October 29, 2023 | Your vocation does not center around your job, it also centers around your home. One of the vocational callings is parenting. God uses this calling to grow us up, and Ken and Nicky Norman pull back the curtain on what the invitation is from Jesus in the life of a parent.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org/

Sermon from Sunday, October 15, 2023 | While most of us probably don't see it this way, your job is one of the primary environments that your spiritual formation gets worked out. But the big question is, “Does my job matter? Does it have any meaningful significance in the world?” Throughout the Scriptures and apexing in the life of Jesus, we see that we were made for work, and good work at that.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org/

Sermon from October 1, 2023 | Vocation: Identity | There's a lot of discussion in circles around what God is calling you to do. But, before you can answer that, you need to listen to who He has called you to be. And only when that answer is solidified can you be free to go and do something. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Standalone Sermon from September 17, 2023 | God speaks in the Scriptures, but he does not speak incessantly. In fact, throughout much of the Bible, He is silent. And so it is with our life. Many times, the Spirit of God is so loud in our life it's as if He's speaking audibly. Yet, other times, the opposite is true. What do we do with the silence of God? When the deepest, most honest prayers we've ever prayed go completely unanswered? For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from September 3, 2023 | Series: Three Circles | Title: Co-Mission | The church stands as a sign-post in every community she is in of another kingdom, of another city. God's interruption into the world gives us both signs and symbols of his kingdom. But it is the summit of his kingdom that is both so startling, and the beginning of an alternative story. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from Sunday, August 20, 2023 | Series: Three Circles | Title: Community | Cynicism is the air that many of us breathe, but there is an alternative story we are invited into. A story of celebration. What if we became a church known for celebration over cynicism, authentic joy over easy skepticism. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from August 6, 2023 | Series: Three Circles | Title: Communion |The story of God can be summed up in one word: intimacy. Our challenge is believing that God is really after intimacy with us; and it has nothing to do with our earning, and everything to do with our capacity to receive His unending invitation. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from July 23, 2023 | Strangers and Citizens | A War For Our Soul Sometimes our real struggle is believing that God is for me; but other times it's living under the assumption that the Devil is a figment of our imagination, not a real agent acting in the real world with real consequences. In Peter's final exhortation, he calls the churches to an act of spiritual resistance —  and the call is just as needed today.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from July 16, 2023 | Strangers and Citizens | Shepherds and the ShepherdIn a world that is strongly skeptical of authority, what does Jesus say about godly authority? Who are the shepherds of the church, and what does their life look like in relation to Jesus, the true Shepherd? A look at Peter's life and Jesus' final exhortation to him spur us on to consider the same exact question.For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from July 9, 2023 | Strangers and Citizens | Family in Exile | Life is hard; and that is no less true within the confines of discipleship to Jesus. What are the key markers that identify us as followers of Jesus, and how might our witness to the world increase with how we treat one another? Peter gives us some strong exhortations about how we ought to treat one another. For more information about Mosaic, visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

In his last sermon at Mosaic which was preached on June 14th, 2023, Zeru shares how rest and love from the Mosaic community have shaped his heart to notice and witness the powerful presence and promises of God. Communities have the power to form or deform us, and communities that choose to listen to and love Jesus participate in a formation that has a joyful and holistic impact on the lives of those within and outside of the church. This has been Zeru's testimony of living alongside Mosaic for the past two years.

Sermon from June 25, 2023 | A lifestyle distinct from culture while living in and among culture might be the greatest challenge of our day. We continue to explore the theme of exile through the letter of 1 Peter. For more information about Mosaic visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from June 18, 2023 | We continue on in 1 Peter as we work through the implications of making a defense. What is an appropriate offense? How might we hold our convictions and welcome people into them? Listen as we lean into being a prophetic voice in our contentious world. For more information about Mosaic visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from May 21, 2023 | When we read exhortations in the Scripture, we immediately flash to, “What do I need to do” without first considering, “Who I am.” Everything flows from our belief in how loved we are. There is important work to do; but not before naming our beloved-ness. For more information about Mosaic visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from May 7, 2023 | We finally arrive at one of the more uncomfortable passages in 1 Peter: the one about submission. But before we enter into the semantics of how we do this, we must first answer Jesus' most pressing question: “Do you understand what I have done for you?” For more information about Mosaic visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

Sermon from April 9, 2023 | Good Friday and Holy Saturday are reminders that following Jesus is marked by a ton of sin, pain, and doubt. And Easter Sunday is a reminder that God did not come to alleviate pain or overlook sin, but to prove life in him is resurrection — for us and His world. Death is inevitable, but it is not final. The dawn is coming. For more information about Mosaic visit us online at www.mosaicknox.org

On this episode, we discuss Good Friday and its implications. 

On this episode, we discuss the Meal that occurred on what we call Maundy Thursday. As Jesus shared with his disciples a command of a new way of living, we find ourselves invited into this mandate as well. 

On the Wednesday of Holy Week, Jesus entered the house of Simon the Leper and was anointed by a woman who many labeled as sinful, unwise, and a nuisance. But Jesus honored her worship and linked it to his Messianic purpose. In this podcast, there are a few reflections to help guide our meditations for this part of Jesus' Passion.

On the Tuesday of Holy Week, Jesus taught in the temple one last time and evoked some questions and feelings. Here are some reflections to guide us in our contemplation of the week of Jesus' Death & Resurrection.