Sermon Podcasts

Today we consider what it means to live a focused life of prayer. In a sense, prayer comes naturally to us. We want so we ask. We hurt so we cry out. We are blessed so we give thanks. So we sometimes define prayer as “speaking to God from the heart.” It seems so easy. What does not come naturally, however, is the focused prayer God wants for us. Prayer that has its basis in God’s grace and the good gifts he wishes to give us. Yes, we can speak from the heart and ask for anything we want. But our Father invites us to pray specifically for the things he wants to give us. Prayer is the opportunity to align our will to God’s will, not the other way around. We have much to learn about prayer. So, along with Jesus’ disciples, we say, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1).

Pastor Dan Johnston preached this sermon at the installation of Pastor Daniel Johnston at Bethany on Sunday, July 24, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

In this special service, we celebrate the installation of Pastor Daniel Johnston at Bethany under the theme “Christ’s Wisdom in the Word.” As pastors bring God’s Word to his people, we know that they are not just bringing an empty message, but they are bringing us the message of the Savior and salvation itself.

Guest preacher Pastor Jesse Johnston preached this sermon at the installation of Pastor Daniel Johnston at Bethany on Sunday, July 17, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

Jesus had a single-minded focus on our salvation—a drive to go to the cross to pay for the sins of the whole world. That focus directs us in our lives of serving Jesus and serving others. We want to have a focus on Jesus’ mission and his will for us—and his focus also teaches us to look to the needs of those around us. Today we think about how focused love always finds a neighbor in need. Considering the book of Ruth, we’ll see a wonderful example of how faith can lead us to focus not just inwardly on our own needs, but outward to the needs of others.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on July 10, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

For Independence Day, we’re looking at the subject of freedom. As we celebrate the freedom that we have as citizens of the United States of America, we also have a different kind of freedom: the freedom that’s found in Christ. And those two freedoms can sometimes be in conflict with each other. “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed”—but that doesn’t mean we’re free to do whatever we want. Freedom without boundaries really isn’t freedom. Today, God asks us to wrestle with how we live out our freedom both as a citizen of the Kingdom of God and as a citizen of the United States.

Pastor Mark Henke preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on July 3, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

God's powerful words reign over evil. That’s a hard thought for us at times. We know what goes on in our world. We know what goes on in our own hearts and lives. There are times when it doesn’t seem to us that God and his Word are really reigning over evil. We might even think he’s indifferent, or wonder why he doesn’t take action. But in our gospel reading today, we see Jesus put on a clear demonstration of his power over evil. And through this, he gives us the confidence that his words always have that same power.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on June 19, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

The victory Jesus won for us is given to us through his Word. As we begin to explore these powerful words of God, we are also celebrating Trinity Sunday, a day we set aside to contemplate the mystery of our Three-in-One God. This mystery of our Triune God goes beyond our ability to fully understand—but as God speaks to us through his Word, he makes sure that we know exactly what he wants us to know about him. And through the Word, we are assured of the Triune God’s blessing in our lives.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on June 12, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

In the final week of our series called Victorious, we also celebrate the day of Pentecost. We will not only look at the work that the Holy Spirit does in coming to give God’s Word to his people, to create and strengthen faith. We will also consider how the Spirit delivers all of the blessings that Jesus won at the cross to the individual hearts of people in this world. The victory that Jesus won is all ours through the Word. And the Holy Spirit is the one who works through that Word to plant it in our hearts.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on June 4, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

As we consider the Ascension of our Lord Jesus, there are many different things we could focus on. We know that Jesus is at the right hand of the Father, speaking to the Father on our behalf. We know he is there preparing a place for us, where we will spend eternity with him. We know that Jesus is ruling all things for the benefit of his Church. But what we’ll focus on today is our Lord Jesus’s commission to his church to take the message of his salvation, the message of his Easter victory, to the ends of the earth. And we’ll see how he accompanies and blesses us as we carry out that important work.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on May 29, 2022.

Learn more at bethanyappleton.org

Today we consider how we think about the end of our life. Is it going to be fight or flight? Do we not want to deal with it? Or is it something we can embrace, even with contentment and joy? Because of Easter, the answer to that question is yes, we can face even life’s final moments with no fear.

Pastor Mark Henke preached this sermon at Bethany's Saturday worship on May 21, 2022.

Learn more at bethanappleton.org

We see that selfless love is victorious over self-glorification most clearly in the saving work that Jesus did for us. But we also see how this has application in our lives as his followers, as we seek to love others just as Jesus has loved us.

Pastor Pat Brown preached this sermon at Bethany's Sunday worship on May 15, 2022.

Learn more at bethanappleton.org