This week's sermon title is "Eucatastrophe!" What in the world is a eucatastrophe, you might ask. And the answer is: a eucatastrophe is a good catastrophe. The famous landscape painter Bob Ross knew about eucatastrophes. He called them happy accidents. Tonight is Thanksgiving Eve. We’re looking forward to joyful celebrations tomorrow with an abundance of food, plenty of noise, and happy conversations. It is a right and good thing to do so! God enjoins His people to do so. Tonight, we’ll consider several biblical eucatastrophes and see how God blesses us through the experience of eucatastrophes.

This week's sermon title is "Let’s Get Radical." Jesus makes outrageous statements. He had the audacity to say that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of needle than for a rich fellow to get into the kingdom of God! Given that we live in the most affluent society in the history of the world, we might want to take notice! Of the seven churches to whom Jesus sends letters, none is rebuked as severely as the church in Laodicea. Will they be able to “hear” what Jesus speaks? Well, maybe we need to ask that question more of ourselves than of the Laodiceans. Jesus has a radical call and He has a radical promise.

This week's sermon title is "Keepers of the Key." What is the key to all of existence? The knowledge of God. Without such knowledge one can only live in darkness. The knowledge of God is the light of life. In His letter to the church in Philadelphia, Jesus has nothing critical to say about that congregation. He does give an accurate analysis of their situation, namely, that they are surrounded by darkness and much opposition. But they have held firm, they have kept the key. In Matthew’s gospel we hear Jesus saying He’s giving keys to His disciples. They must keep them; they must use them. We are keepers of the key.

This week's sermon title is "Be on the Alert." There is no deception worse than self-deception. In our day, virtue signaling is all the rage. Individuals do it. Companies do it. Communities do it. Sports teams do it. What is the goal of all the virtue signaling? To be seen as virtuous, of course! But what if that label “Virtuous” proves not to be accurate. Everyone may think it is accurate, but perhaps it isn’t Then what? We’ll see some examples of “then what” in our texts. Samuel brings a wake-up call to King Saul, while Jesus tells a parable about virgins who need to wake up. The church in Sardis needs to be on the alert.

This week's sermon title is "Tolerance Reconsidered." We live in an age marked by tolerance. Tolerance is considered an essential character trait. But in Jesus’ letter to the church in Thyatira that is the very attribute for which He rebukes them. He didn’t rebuke for their having the attribute of tolerance itself, but for their continuing with it when they knew it was preventing a malignant sore from being treated. Jesus says He will treat the malignancy – and it won’t be pretty. God is merciful. He calls for people to repent. He exercises great tolerance, but there comes a point in time when tolerance must be reconsidered. An insight for our age.

Would you like to move to Pergamum? According to Jesus, the throne of Satan was in Pergamum. Can you imagine incorporating that bit of information into a nifty real estate ad! Well, there was a church in Pergamum too. That meant confrontation, and at least one person from the church was martyred. Jesus commends the church for holding fast to Him in the face of violent opposition. Sometimes such in-your-face opposition is not effective. Hence, the devil has other schemes. He’s also a Liar. Liars seek to deceive. Jesus says deception is happening in Pergamum.

This week's sermon title is "The Crown of Life." If God is God and He is good, why do people suffer, and why are injustices not brought to account? These are common questions for all of us. We wonder about these things. Does God not know what’s happening? Can He not change things? The church at Smyrna needs to hear from God on just such questions, so Jesus’ letter to them does just that. The folk of Smyrna follow in a long line of God’s people that include men such as Naboth and Stephen, both killed by religious judicial authority. 100 years after this letter from Jesus the Smyrnans will still experience violent persecution.

This week's sermon title is "Refiner’s Fire." Paul spent more time with the church in Ephesus than with any other church. That church served as the base for evangelistic efforts throughout the wider region. Acts 20 records the touching, final farewell of Paul with the Ephesian Elders. It’s not too much to say the Church of Ephesus was top-notch. The letter they receive in Revelation says much the same thing, but with a significant caveat. There is a problem. It must be addressed. If not addressed, it could prove fatal. Jesus’ letter seeks to light the refiner’s fire. Little things can become big things. Just ask Solomon.

This week's sermon title is "It Begins." The book of Revelation is about the revelation of Jesus Christ. But what is a revelation? Think of the unveiling of a statue. Something preventing the object from being visible to plain view is removed and voilà, now the statue is plainly seen. The removal of that “something” is the act of revelation. Such an unveiling occurred on the Mount of Transfiguration. The apostle John was one of the disciples present then. While on Patmos, though, he received another revelation of Jesus. It is fantastic. It is fearful. It is symbolic. It is accurate. It begins the message of Revelation.

This week's sermon title is "Know These Things." We live in tumultuous times. The nations are unsettled. There is deepening oppression in China. North Korea continues to act irrationally. The entire Middle East pulsates with hatred. In the Americas, no one can figure who belongs where. And Europe is a basket case. Things were no better in the first century. Therefore, as God sends a message to seven particular churches, He grounds them about matters that must be known. This concerns the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. People today still need to know these foundational truths about Jesus.