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You — Be There This message centers on God's call to "be there"—to remain where He has placed us, listen for His voice, depend on His Word, and receive from Him before trying to give anything to others. Using Israel's manna in the wilderness, Numbers 11, Exodus 16, Deuteronomy 8, and Jesus' temptation in Matthew 4, the message shows that God's provision was never merely about bread. The deeper lesson was dependence: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." Israel had to gather, use, and preserve the manna according to God's instructions, teaching them that His gifts are only rightly enjoyed when received in submission to the Giver. The message then connects this wilderness lesson to the life of faith. God sometimes humbles, tests, and allows hardship not to destroy His people, but "to do you good in the end." Romans 8 explains that this good is ultimately being formed more and more into the likeness of Jesus. Jesus Himself modeled perfect dependence in the wilderness, refusing to act merely because He had the power or because the enemy suggested it. He lived by the voice of His Father. The great battle for every believer is therefore: Who will I listen to—God, myself, the world, my fears, or the enemy? Romans 15 reminds us that everything preserved in the Older Testament was written for our learning, so that through the endurance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. God's long record of faithfulness teaches us to trust Him. And His work in us is often "little by little"—victory by degrees. We do not manufacture transformation or ministry; the God of patience, comfort, and hope works His truth into us

This sermon explores the command to work out salvation with fear and trembling, defining it as a response to God's internal work through faith and obedience. It distinguishes between the past, present, and future aspects of salvation, emphasizing that sanctification is a continuous process driven by grace rather than human effort. The message clarifies that while good works are the natural fruit of genuine faith, they do not generate salvation or spiritual maturity on their own. Listeners are encouraged to rely on the Holy Spirit for the desire and ability to grow, examining their lives for areas where God is actively shaping their character. The sermon concludes with an invitation to rest in the certainty of God's promise to complete the good work He has begun in believers.

This introductory sermon to the book of Ecclesiastes challenges the common perception of the text as purely pessimistic, arguing instead that it reveals the fullness of life given by God. The speaker outlines the book's structure as an investigation and evaluation of human toil, emphasizing that while earthly life is transient, it is a divine gift meant to be enjoyed. Key themes include tracing the contours of biblical wisdom, placing work in its rightful context, and recalibrating expectations of justice in a broken world. The message encourages young married couples to widen their perspective on life's seasons, deepen their roots of joy in both prosperity and adversity, and recognize the beauty in the cycle of life and death. Ultimately, the sermon calls for a life lived in fear of God, characterized by worship and the active treasuring of the goodness God provides.

The wilderness journey continues as God's people move on from Rephidim and settle at the base of Mt. Sinai. It is a large, impressive, and intimidating mountain. There is thunder, lighting, quaking, and the loud blasting of trumpets. In that awe-inspiring and fear-inducing environment, God will meet with Moses and begin setting forth the conditions of the Old Covenant. If His people will obey Him, they will be His special people, a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, representing Him to the outside world. If they do not, they will surely die. In this passage, God not only continues guiding and providing for His people, He also continues revealing their need for a kind of deliverance that goes deeper than the natural realm. It is more significant than merely deliverance from Egypt. At the deepest level, they need deliverance from themselves, from their unbelief, and their own false confidence in their ability to save themselves. They need another mountain, different from Sinai, a mountain characterized not by distance and death, but by access and life. They need Mt. Zion where Jesus reigns supreme as the One who meets all the conditions, who provides full consecration, and who grants eternal life as a gift of grace. In the Exodus story, God is preparing them, and us, for this greater provision in Christ.

Genesis 9:1-17 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. 2 And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. 3 Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. 4 But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. 5 And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. 6 Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man. 7 And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein. 8 ¶ And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, 9 And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; 10 And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. 11 And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. 12 ¶ And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

Genesis 19:30 'And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.' The sermon contrasts the spiritual vitality of Abraham with the gradual decline of Lot, illustrating how misplaced priorities lead to disaster. It emphasises that while Lot was righteous, his lack of personal communion with God and reliance on material wealth caused him to drift from faith into sin. The preacher highlights the danger of walking by sight rather than by faith, showing how Lot's choices resulted in the loss of his family and dignity. Through this tragic account, the message serves as a warning against compromising spiritual disciplines for worldly comfort. Ultimately, it calls believers to maintain their focus on Christ and the cross to avoid a similar fate.

This sermon examines Jesus' instructions to His disciples in Matthew 10, emphasizing the necessity of being wise as serpents and harmless as doves while facing inevitable persecution. The message highlights that believers should not fear those who can only kill the body, but rather revere God, who holds authority over the soul and eternity. It addresses the tension between familial loyalty and allegiance to Christ, asserting that Jesus must remain the ultimate priority even if it causes division within households. The text concludes with the assurance that confessing Christ before men leads to His confession of the believer before the Father, while denying Him results in eternal loss, encouraging believers to endure with hope and perform acts of kindness in His name.

Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.

Sunday Morning Worship at Covenant Church (Burbank, CA) — September 13, 2026. Rev. Brooks Pipher preaches "What God Thinks of You" from Deuteronomy 20:1–9, part of our series through Deuteronomy. Covenant Church is a Reformed congregation (Associate Reformed Presbyterian / ARP) in Burbank, California, gathering for worship every Lord's Day at 10 AM and 6 PM at 160 S. Victory Blvd., Burbank, CA 91502. More sermons, service times, and how to visit: https://www.covenantburbank.com Scripture: Deuteronomy 20:1–9. Preached by Rev. Brooks Pipher.