Burnt Hickory | Sermons

As Christians, we see that worship is the only logical response of a life that realizes what Jesus has done, is doing, and will do in eternity. Worship is so much more than just a song that we sing, it’s putting God’s worthiness on display, and we live this out in so many ways throughout our lives. We learn from scripture that there is danger in flippantly approaching and worshipping the Holy God, and yet His intention was and still is to bless us with His presence. We will never worship God with all our heart if our concern for what others think is stronger than our concern for what God thinks.

In continuation of our sermon series called Rethink Your Life, we explore our relationship with the word of God. We know we can trust the word of God because not only is it a reliable collection of historical documents and is written directly by eyewitnesses, if fulfills so many specific prophecies. As Christians, we can place faith in the fact that its ultimate author was God, not man. Even Jesus himself fully trusted it and quoted it back so many times. Because it is so reliable and written by God, we can have full trust in its authority to deliver to us the truth of God.

We start an amazing sermon series this week where we will take time over the next few weeks rethinking our lives in light of scripture. This week, we look at our relationship with Jesus. While sin is an action, it is also a universal starting condition of all of mankind’s hearts. We so often replace living inside God’s authority while we follow our own desires. What we see from scripture is that God’s grace is the base of salvation, and we can only find that salvation through faith. Instead of beginning with changing for the better first and then finding our way to God, we see that life change and good works are, a result of His salvific work in us.

As we stand on the brink of a new year, our hearts resonate with the journey of the Wise Men who sought the King—the true Messiah sent by the Father. In this New Year's Eve reflection, we'll explore the timeless lessons from these seekers of truth.

Guided by divine signs, the Wise Men recognized a wondrous star leading them to the King. Similarly, our worship is a journey guided by divine signs, recognizing the King's presence in our lives. Overcoming obstacles, the Wise Men stayed true to the essence of worship, avoiding fear and political agendas to honor the Holy King. Our worship, too, should be marked by overcoming personal obstacles, rooted in honoring the Holy King.

In response to divine revelation, the Wise Men expressed joyful dedication and rejoiced in the presence of the King. Our worship, likewise, should be characterized by joyful dedication, responding to divine revelation. Worship that honors is free from personal gain, rooted in pure motives, avoiding the pitfalls seen in Herod's troubled reaction and the knowledge-laden but faith-lacking religious leaders.

Lastly, we explore worship that brings joy, acknowledging Jesus as King, High Priest, and Savior through the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Our worship, akin to the Wise Men's offerings, should recognize Jesus in His fullness and embrace sacrificial worship.

Whether you join us online or in person, let's glean valuable lessons from the Wise Men on this special New Year's Eve, understanding what it truly means to offer Worthy Worship of the King. See you soon!

It’s Christmas Eve at Burnt Hickory, and a perfect time to discover true hope because our Savior Jesus is born unto us. He is Emmanuel, Christ with us. Not just a baby in a manger so long ago, but the true Mesiah sent by the Father for us today. We see in Galatians that in the fullness of time, God sent His son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. He came to be punished and die on our behalf as payment for our sins. He lived the life we should be living, and died the death that we deserve. He came to be buried in a tomb, but praise God, not to stay there forever. He is risen again, defeating death, and Jesus paid our price for sin for all eternity. If we believe in Him as savior, we have eternal life with Him! What good news we have in celebrating Christmas, not just a season of giving and receiving, or being near family, or singing carols and sharing merriment. But in welcoming the gift of Christ into our hearts as our Savior and being brought near to our Heavenly Father, singing of His great and marvelous love for us, and then making Him known to everyone we encounter because He gives us hope. Merry Christmas!

Today, we look at the aspect of joy in the glory of God through our advent sermon series. We see that when God shows up, His glory exposes us to who we really are, men of unclean lips. His glory also drives out fear and replaces it with true joy and it creates trust and confidence in His promises. God’s glory changes out priorities in the routines of our day-to-day life, so that even in the mundane, we can have joy. John 3:17 says that God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. In light of this, we don’t live in fear, but in perfect joy through faith in Him.

In our sermon series around the themes of Advent leading up to Christmas, we explore absolute love this week. God is always faithful and always fulfills His promises. God’s love deeply knows all of each of us, from the beginning to the end, and He constantly provides His life-giving power to us. Because of His love, He richly extends His eternal mercy to us and will reward a humble heart. Because He fulfills every promise, we can trust Him with everything in life. Just like Mary did in scripture when she was told about the birth of her son being the Messiah, we should glorify the lord and rejoice in our soul because of God’s saving love.

We begin the Christmas season with a sermon series diving into the aspects of the advent – hope, joy, love, and peace. This week as we look at the source of our true hope, we see that it comes from a God who has come to earth to be among us. Hope is the expectation of future blessings and the confidence that the best is yet to come. As Christ followers, we can have true hope because Jesus removes our past, reshapes our present, and refocuses our future. Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has come to His people and redeemed them. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant Daved, salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. That’s what brings us hope this Christmas – Jesus.

This Missions Sunday, we get to celebrate what God is doing through us both here and around the world. We also get to hear a sermon from Jonathan Ekman from Voice of the Martyrs on encouragement from the persecuted family – churches around the world in hostile areas seeking to proclaim the gospel in the face of opposition. We see that if we focus on an eternal perspective, we can have true joy in the midst of hardship, and that our boldness for Christ is how we live out our faith in this world. Through the word of God, we have hope to face the world and all it’s hatred for the truth and love of God.

If you want to be a part of encouraging those who are being persecuted through prayer and support, then check out VOM - https://www.persecution.com. If you’ve got questions about Jesus and how you can make an impact here and around the world, then reach out today. We’d love to connect with you, take time to answer questions and pray with you, and show you some opportunities for you to live out your faith along with us. You can always take the next step in your faith journey by visiting burnthickory.com/next.

Special Guest: Jonathan Ekman.

God’s presence is no longer to be celebrated for falling on a place, because it has now fallen onto and into His people. We see in Acts what it truly means to be Spirit led as we trust and submit to God’s timing. As we study scripture, we learn that following God means standing assured in God’s promises and not in our own strength. The power of the Holy Spirit comes in the form of us as Christ followers walking in the confidence that we have in Him and His finished work in our salvation.