Sermon Podcasts

As we wrap up our series on the wisdom that comes from above, we focus on putting that wisdom into practice in our lives. We’ll consider the words of James, that we should not merely listen to the Word, but do what it says. God’s blessings as you consider with us what it means to live the wisdom of God every day.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on September 4, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

Last week we talked about where we find true wisdom—this wisdom is Jesus himself and the saving work he did for us, and we find it in God’s Word. Today we consider how and why we value that wisdom. We’ll look at the example of Moses, who made a conscious decision to value the wisdom from above over all the other things the world had to offer him as a prince of Egypt. We pray that God would give us that same kind of faith to value the wisdom that comes from above.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on August 21, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

What is wisdom, and where do we find it? The Proverbs tell us, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10). And St. Paul summarized wisdom when he wrote, “In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). So, the wisdom that will capture our hearts and minds over the next few weeks is, simply put, Jesus himself. He is the centerpiece of God’s gracious plan of salvation for us—the wisdom that is revealed to us in his Word. Today our encouragement is simple: this wisdom, summed up in Jesus himself, is sweet to your soul. Find it, value it, and live it.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on August 21, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

Last week we considered how we should look for help in the cross when facing discouragement. In part two of our sermon series, we’re taking a look at help for embracing encouragement. Sometimes we’re not very good at being encouragers—or at receiving and asking for encouragement. The Scriptures tell us over and over to encourage one another. But how often do we take up that challenge—that command—from our Savior? Encouragement is one way God blesses us and allows us to be a blessing to others. Today we’ll wrestle with the challenge of following through on being encouragers to one another.

Pastor Mark Henke preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on August 15, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

In this two-week sermon series, we’re looking at discouragement and encouragement. These are things that we often don’t do very well with. Handling discouragement and not letting it pull us down can be difficult for God’s people—especially when we may hear that, as Christians, we should be happy all the time. And then we find ourselves buried in the muck. Today we will consider how God would have us view and respond to the discouragement that is part of all of our lives.

Pastor Mark Henke preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on August 7, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

As we look ahead to putting together our ministry plan at Bethany, we have an opportunity to consider God’s generosity to us—and what’s really behind that generosity. God has a plan. A plan that, by being generous to his people, we might then be generous to others. A plan that empowers us to spread his life-saving gospel message to those who don’t yet know it.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on August 1, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

As we wrap up our sermon series on powerful statements from Jesus, Jesus invites his disciples—both then and now—to come away with him to a quiet place and get some rest. Of course, rest is something that we all need in life. But it’s not just rest for our bodies that we need, but rest for our souls as well. So today, we look at the way that God uses those quiet times that we spend with him, not only to care for us, but also to help us care for those around us.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on July 24, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

Jesus said these words as he was sending his disciples out on a mission trip of their own. He told them to leave everything behind except their shoes and their walking staff … and it might seem like they wouldn’t be very well equipped for the work that God was giving them to do. Maybe we feel that way sometimes too—in our personal lives or in our congregation, do we have what we need to carry out the task that God has given us? Today we’ll see that between the Lord’s care and the Lord’s Word, we have everything we need to do the work he has in mind for us.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on July 18, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

Today we hear a statement that Jesus made when he was back in his hometown of Nazareth, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town.” This statement not only gives us an opportunity to consider how we honor Jesus when he comes to us through his Word. It also shows us some of the obstacles we may face as we seek to share his Word—when we stand in that place as prophet and speak God’s Word to those who need to hear it.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on July 10, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

As we continue our series, we look at another powerful statement of Jesus from the gospel of Mark, this time set in the context of Jesus raising Jairus’s daughter from the dead. Jesus comes to the crowded house, full of people mourning the death of this little girl, and he says, “The child is not dead, but asleep.” And in making this statement, Jesus shows us that he has power over death—power that he exercised not just on one occasion for one individual, but power that he promises to all of his people.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on July 4, 2021.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org