Compass Weekly Sermons

In Acts 8, we find the story of a man named Philip. Philip's time in ministry begins in Acts 6 with food distribution. In Acts 8, we find him continuing the mission of spreading the gospel and healing people like the apostles did. And then, we can fast forward to Acts 21 to find Philip as a faithful husband and father. Philip shows us that we can be faithful to follow Jesus in every stage of life.

The early church faced obstacles and opposition. No one understood this better than Stephen. First called to take care of widows, Stephen performs miracles and shares the truth of Jesus with wisdom and authority. This gets Stephen into trouble. In this sermon, Pastor Will explains the lead up to the death of Stephen, showing that faithful disciples trust Jesus in life and in death. We hope to never face such difficulty, but if we do, we should hope to have the kind of courage and love that Stephen displays.

In the beginning of Acts 6, we find another instance of where the danger to the church came from within. Conflict comes into the church, and the church handles it with openness, teamwork, and honesty. In this sermon, Rev. Leon Weller walks through Acts 6:1-7, showing that speaking up in a godly way helps us to solve problems in community. There is no perfect church, just people who commit to follow Jesus faithfully together.

The early church was facing persecution from outside the church in Acts 4, and in Acts 5, we find them facing an entirely new challenge. The challenge of Ananias and Sapphira was the first challenge from within. In this sermon, Pastor Will unpacks this difficult passage, encouraging us to be totally honest with ourselves and with God.

The week of the crucifixion was a difficult week for Peter. He was full of fear and anger, and those emotions led him to act in humiliating ways, including betraying his master three times. Mere weeks later, Peter finds himself alongside John in front of the same men who campaigned to have Jesus murdered at the cross. Peter had completely changed. In this sermon, Jason Carter unpacks Acts 4 and the transformation that Peter experienced through forgiveness, witnessing the resurrection, and receiving the holy spirit. We can experience a similar transformation today!

In Acts 3, we find the remarkable healing of a lame man by Peter and John. In this sermon, Pastor Will works through Acts 3 and the subject of healing. Healing is never a reward for faithfulness - it is always a gift of God's mercy. Sometimes we see miraculous healing now, and that healing is a demonstration of God's power reminding us of the coming kingdom, when healing will be universal.

As the early church developed and grew, they practiced simple and effective things. They ate together, they heard the gospel taught, they shared financial resources, and they prayed for each other. Simply put, the early church followed Jesus's example and lived in loving, generous community. In this sermon, Rev. Leon Weller explains what they did and how we can follow their example of following Jesus well.

Before Jesus was crucified, he spent ample time preparing his disciples for what was next. But the disciples needed to learn how to minister, learn the message, and prepare for life without Jesus. In all of this, there was a missing element that would help the disciples do the works of Jesus - the spirit of God. In this sermon, Dan Kruer walks through Acts 2:1-41, showing that the disciples were faithful to the mission that God gave them.

The book of Acts is a continuation of the story of the mission of Jesus. In this first sermon in the new Acts series, Pastor Will walks through the first 11 verses of Acts, detailing the importance of the kingdom of God and how Jesus is with his church through the power of the spirit.

Listen to two remarkable testimonies by Jason Carter and Renee Dugan, followed by a sermonette by Pastor Will.