Hoover Church of Christ Sermons

Hoover Church of Christ Sermons

By Hoover Church of ChristReligion & SpiritualityChristianity
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Hoover Church of Christ Sermons episodes

  • The Son of David

    To be honest, the genealogies of Scripture are the parts we probably skim (or skip!) most frequently when we’re reading the Bible. After all, who cares that that Jehoshophat’s son was Joram, right? It might even be more perplexing that after reading the Old Testament for a long time and (finally) getting to the New Testament, the first page of Matthew is mostly names, many of which we don’t even really know or care about.

    But as we probably ought to guess, God has important reasons for including genealogies in Scripture, and we’ll explore some of them tomorrow. There’s so much weight in the very first words of Matthew’s gospel, of course: “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” David and Abraham are the theological heavyweights of the Old Testament, so it’s not surprising that Matthew mentions them first.

    But there are also some hidden gems in Matthew’s genealogy, and we’ll explore some of them tomorrow as well. For example, why are five women mentioned? And why these particular women? And what about some of these other, lesser-known characters?

    Jesus is the “son of David, the son of Abraham,” but he’s also the son of Rahab and Ruth and Bathsheba and Shealtiel and Eliakim and others. All this, of course, is according to God’s plan.

    30 min
  • But He Was a Leper . . .
    Naaman had everything, it seems, except one thing: “he was a leper.” Depending on what the text means when it says “leprosy,” Naaman’s condition was at best a disease that marred his appearance and at worst something that devastated his entire life.
    But the turning point of this story is what he does when he’s given the opportunity for the leprosy to be taken away. But he refuses to obey.
    Was it because he didn’t really believe it would happen? Was it pride? An inflated sense of importance? Did Naaman think he was too good to wade into the Jordan River’s dirty waters?
    It seems that way. Regardless, he wouldn’t do it until one of his servants finally talked some sense into him. And then, as you know, his leprosy disappeared.
    Lessons for us are abundant. We’re reminded that God is the God of the world, not just the small nation of Israel. He’s working among people who are different from us.
    And then there’s this lesson: Sometimes God tells us to do things that don’t make sense to us. He expects us to obey anyway.
    When we trust God, though, and when we know he’ll do what he promises, we’ll do what he says. Even when it makes no sense at all.
    And God blesses that kind of obedience.
    31 min
  • The Hope

    The world is a scary place, you know? People in our church family—including some of you, no doubt—are struggling with different kinds of anxieties and concerns today. Perhaps it’s an upcoming medical test, a troubled marriage, or tension and stress at work. Unfortunately, fear is part of what it means to be human—at least in the world as we experience it now.

    But God offers a different way. Permeating the Bible from beginning to end is something called hope. I’ve found it fascinating lately how much it’s mentioned, and particularly in the last few chapters of Acts as Paul appears as a defendant before various councils and rulers.

    Notice especially the bold-faced type in the passages below:

    Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.” – Acts 23:6

    But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust. – Acts 24:14-15

    other than this one thing that I cried out while standing among them: ‘It is with respect to the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you this day.'” – Acts 24:21

    And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead? – Acts 26:6-8

    For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain. – Acts 28:20

    Notice that Paul connects hope with the resurrection of the dead. In other words, the hope that we have is that this world isn’t all there is. Because Jesus was raised, we know that there’s a coming resurrection where God will make all things right. That changes us.

    It’s important to note that biblical hope isn’t that everything will work out here and now as we want, but rather that as God’s children we know that it eventually will.

    YOLO—“You Only Live Once”—is, perhaps, a catchy motto, but it’s not the way we live. And knowing we will always live gives us a kind of peace and confidence that comes when we know that God created us for something more.

    1 hr 14 min

About Hoover Church of Christ Sermons

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Our church family here is a loving, close-knit group of Christians trying our best to live for Christ. We’re not perfect, of course, but we’re striving each day to let God’s Word be our guide for everything we do—in everyday life, at work, at school, at church. . . everywhere. Many of us come from different backgrounds, and we work in various fields, but we share a common love for Jesus Christ and His church and look for opportunities to share that love with others.