Heritage Bible Church

If you don't have questions about life after death, then you're not thinking enough about it. Even if we know and trust the Scriptures, we don't know everything we might want to know. We certainly don't know everything we will one day come to know. But we can know something of what is to come in the resurrection by listening in on a conversation between Jesus and the Sadducees in Luke 20:27–40. They denied the resurrection and attempted to trick Jesus with an absurd question. In this text we learn the lesson they learned that day: Jesus has answers to all of our questions about death. Let's listen and make ourselves all the more ready for that day.

As Christians we will never cease to marvel at all that Christ accomplished through his death upon cross. While the soldiers and bystanders looked upon him as he hung there beaten, bruised, and dying, they saw a Messiah who was weak, helpless, and defeated. But in his wisdom, God used the death of his Son to reveal his power over death––so that in him we may have life. From 1 Corinthians 1:17-21 we see that the weakness of the cross, which is folly to the world, is truly the power of God.

With this sermon from Acts 28:30–31, we come to the end of our series with a text that marks the end of the book of Acts. This is the verse from which we get our series title, God's Unhindered Word. The last word is, more precisely though awkwardly translated, unhinderedly. What is that word doing there at the end of Luke's second volume? Luke's abrupt ending is no ending. This last word moves us to boldly proclaim God's word in our times, a fitting conclusion to this series marking our fiftieth anniversary as a church. Here's an abrupt ending to convince us that God's Word will not.

The last book of the Bible opens with a vision. It's not a vision of judgment meant for explaining at a prophecy conference. It's a vision of the Sovereign Savior meant for sustaining churches, ordinary local churches like Ephesus, Thyatira, Pergamum, Laodicea, and even Heritage Bible Church. After an opening greeting of grace, a colossal vision of a cosmic Christ comes at us in Revelation 1. And that is no accident. More than anything else, we must see Jesus. In Revelation 1:8–20, God provides a surprising vision to sustain us in our work and witness. Here is a vision of Christ to sustain the work for Christ. Listen to this sermon by Brad Baugham, lead pastor at Emmanuel Bible Church in Mauldin.

Choices. They're a significant part of life. Some are small—what we'll eat for lunch. Some are big—where we live. We face choices every day. But there are also moments when we face life-altering decisions. These pivotal moments impact the rest of our lives. In Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Moses offers a pivotal choice to the people of Israel. Listen as Abe Stratton, HBC pastoral staff member from 2008-2023, leads us to gaze upon the One who calls us to a major decision. Abe is the Senior Pastor at Bethany Baptist Church in Brevard, NC.

Ephesians 1:3-14 is a powerful song of praise and adoration to the Triune God. Paul's single paragraph of praise to the Father for the blessings so richly lavished on us in the Son and through the Spirit gives us every reason to sing, to praise, to worship, and to live for our God. Purposed before time by the Father, secured in real time by the Son, and sealed for all time by the Spirit, the saving purpose of the Triune God cannot and will not be hindered. This gospel of God is unstoppable. Listen to this second Sunday in our five part series, God's Unhindered Word: Fifty Years and Counting. Danny Brooks was Heritage's preaching pastor from 1998–2016 and is now the pastor for preaching at Gospel Hope Church in Riverton, Utah.

On the 50th anniversary of a church's beginning we find ourselves both grateful and sobered. We too shall pass on, and what of our labors, small or large, will still matter to coming generations or more importantly, to God? And with that future in mind, how should we order our lives? Psalm 90 helps us answer these questions. Possibly the oldest Psalm in our Biblical collection, it unveils the reality of our passing days on earth and directs us where to fix our hope and prayers. Listen in on this first Sunday in a five part series, God's Unhindered Word: Fifty Years and Counting. Drew Conley is the son of our first preaching pastor, Jim Conley and the pastor for preaching at Hampton Park Baptist Church.

Spies, flattery, politics, a snare, money, revolutionary visions, silence, and the fall of ancient Rome. In the middle of all of this is Jesus and his answer to a question about something everyone seems to hate except those who collect it: taxes. Luke 20:19–26 is a short passage packed with no shortage of drama with lessons for how Christian's relate—and don't relate—to human governing authorities in every age. As important, how human governing authorities relate to Christ. Caesar as it turns out is not a problem for Jesus, but Jesus is a problem for Caesar.

Here's a legitimate question: who has legitimate authority? For example, who can access your medical records? Who gets to make the laws we're required to follow? Who has authority to issue orders on the field of battle? Luke 20:1–18 concerns authority of the most important kind: the authority to bring about God's redemptive purposes, to save, to forgive, to set prisoners free, to rule as king over God's kingdom. When Jesus showed up to the temple in Jerusalem he began to preach the good news on the basis of his authority as God's king. That's when he was interrupted by a question, "by what authority. . .?"

This week we will hear the comforting and mobilizing message of Revelation through the seven promises of blessing in the book (1:3, 14:12–13, 16:13–15, 19:7–9, 20:6, 22:7, and 22:14). These seven "Blessed" promises are meant to give churches like ours encouragement to hear God's Word, courage to persevere, and hope of seeing Christ. May the message of this book give us "strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow."