Bigger and better...that's what we strive for, likely more often than we even realize it. In today's society, we're constantly on a mission to acquire more. More clothes and shoes, a bigger house, nicer cars, larger paychecks, and the list goes on. This miguided pursuit of security is also known as greed--an excessive desire to acquire and keep. Listen to this teaching from Luke 12:13-21 to discover what areas of your life might be consumed by greed and what you can do about it. 

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The Parable of the Rich Fool

13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

What makes you angry? Is all anger sin? 

Anger is a complex emotion that we can control for good, or that can control us for evil. At the center of this misguided pursuit of justice is a desire to satisfy our own preferences, which is a problem when our preferences don't align with God's.

Listen to this teaching to learn more about righteous anger vs. unrighteous anger, and how you can be free from the sin of wrath. 

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Mark 3:1-6

A Man with a Withered Hand

1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2 And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” 4 And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “Too much of a good thing is a bad thing?” Sometimes our desire to experience joy or satisfaction ends up hurting us more than helping us. Gluttony–the misguided pursuit of pleasure–leads us to overconsume food, media, substances, and more. But the temporary joy these things might bring us eventually becomes despair. In this teaching, we learn about how gluttony turns us from the presence of God, and what practices we can engage in to experience true pleasure in life.

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Number 11:4-6

4 Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

"Envy is feeling bitter when others have it better." ~Rebecca DeYoung

What do you think you need to be happy? So often in life we find ourselves thinking that if only we had that other person's house, family, friends, job, bank account, etc., we'd be content. Afterall, it's just not fair that someone else has it better than we do, right? This misguided pursuit of contentment, also known as envy, can leave us feeling stressed, anxious, and inferior to others, and the only true antidote to envy comes in trusting who God has designed each of us to be. Listen to this teaching for a full description of how envy manifests itself in our lives and what the solution to this sin is. 

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Mark 15:9-11

9 And he answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” 10 For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead.

 

John 3:25-30

25 Now a discussion arose between some of John's disciples and a Jew over purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.” 27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Where do you seek out intimacy, attention, and affection? Our desire for connection can often lead us down a path on which we are focused on our own self-gratification and pleasure, even at the expense of others. This teaching on lust, the next of the seven deadly sins we are studying, examines the misguided pursuit of love and looks at how we can experience the relationships with God and others that we were actually meant to have.

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1 John 2:15-17

Do Not Love the World

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

Every single one of us longs to hear “you are good” declared over our lives. If we seek to have this longing fulfilled through others or by our own achievements, these misguided pursuits of glory only leave us feeling empty and isolated. During this series of the 7 Deadly Sins, we are examining misguided pursuits to happiness and discovering way to find joy in the real thing instead of the counterfeit. This teaching examines our misguided pursuit of glory, and how we can receive glory instead of striving to achieve it.   

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Luke 18:9-14

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

We all want to matter and be a part of something that matters; this is typically why we set New Years goals and resolutions. But we all know deep down that the satisfaction we get from these things is temporary, and that even the things themselves will fade away and ultimately amount to nothing. So what can we pursue that will have lasting meaning? We come and go, churches come and go, but the kingdom of God lasts forever.

In this teaching, Pastor Austin helps shape our view regarding God’s Kingdom and shares how we can participate in something that truly matters. He also shares the vision for the future of King’s Cross Church and how we plan to get there. 

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Genesis 1:26-28

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

27 So God created man in his own image,     in the image of God he created him;     male and female he created them.

28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

"What should I pray about? Am I saying the right things?""Do I pray often enough? Long enough?""Why should I pray if God already knows what he's going to do?"

Do any of these questions sound familiar? Prayer can feel intimidating and overwhelming to many of us, but the Bible tells us that we should have confidence in engaging in conversation with God. Listen to this teaching to learn more about what prayer is, why you should pray, and how you can pray. 

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Hebrews 14:14-16

Jesus the Great High Priest

14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

What do you picture when you think of heaven? If images of puffy clouds and flying babies playing harps come to mind, you’re not alone. But what the Bible tells us about heaven is very different. In this sermon based on Isaiah 65:17-25, Pastor Austin walks us through what heaven will be like and why it is something we should long for. 

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Isaiah 65:17-25

New Heavens and a New Earth

17 “For behold, I create new heavens     and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered     or come into mind. 18 But be glad and rejoice forever     in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy,     and her people to be a gladness. 19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem     and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping     and the cry of distress. 20 No more shall there be in it     an infant who lives but a few days,     or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old,     and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed. 21 They shall build houses and inhabit them;     they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22 They shall not build and another inhabit;     they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,     and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. 23 They shall not labor in vain     or bear children for calamity, for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord,     and their descendants with them. 24 Before they call I will answer;     while they are yet speaking I will hear. 25 The wolf and the lamb shall graze together;     the lion shall eat straw like the ox,     and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy     in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord.

Do you ever find yourself thinking, "How did I get here? How did the progression of my life lead me into this place that I don’t want to be?" Or maybe you heard that the Christian life is full of joy and peace, but you are not experiencing it; you trusted in Jesus, but the life that you were promised isn’t being realized. These occurrences are common to us all, and most of the time they can be traced back to a singular problem. In this sermon, we will identify what that problem is and what to do about it. As we do, we will uncover what Bible actually says about being happy in this world. 

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Micah 5:1-6

1 Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops;     siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel     on the cheek. 2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,     who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me     one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old,     from ancient days. 3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time     when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return     to the people of Israel. 4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,     in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great     to the ends of the earth. 5 And he shall be their peace.                                                                                                    When the Assyrian comes into our land     and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds     and eight princes of men; 6 they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,     and the land of Nimrod at its entrances; and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian     when he comes into our land     and treads within our border.