Sermons - Faith Community Church

Sermons - Faith Community Church

By Mark Slomka, Vince and Lorissa MedranoReligion & Spirituality
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Sermons - Faith Community Church episodes

  • Light of the World | Advent week 4

    Speaker: Serene Neddenriep

    Luke 1:76-79

    “And you, my little son, will be called the prophet of the Most High, because you will prepare the way for the Lord. You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins. Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.”

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  • Light of the World | Advent week 3

    Speaker: Vince Medrano

    Jesus is the Light of the World. In contrast to walking in darkness, in Him we have hope for where we are being led. Even when tragedy strikes, or when life is uncertain, we know that by following the Light of the world we are being led to life. But we don’t treat Jesus as a means to an end. He’s not merely One that gets us from point A to point B, by following Him we learn to move like Him as we journey.

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  • Light of the World | Advent week 1

    Speaker: Lorissa and Vince Medrano

    On this Family Sunday at Faith and week 1 of the Advent calendar we celebrate the Light of the World. When we look at the world around us and wherever we see darkness, pain and turmoil we know that God’s light is breaking into that darkness.

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  • Esther | moment 7

    Speaker: Mark Slomka

    As we finish our reflections on Esther we look at some takeaways from this book that will help us navigate our lives today…

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  • Esther | moment 6

    Speaker: Rose Males

    What we take note of about Esther is how true she stayed to God’s leading in her life. In the face of overwhelming obstacles and her own life being in danger Esther didn’t waiver from her purpose.

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  • Esther | moment 5

    Speaker: Lorissa Medrano

    There is One who sees what we can’t see and knows what we can’t know. So, when we fear the unknown of the future we can be assured that God works in our deepest places of darkness.

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  • Esther | moment 4

    Speaker: Vince Medrano

    There is significance in lament. We lament because our hearts are not callous to tragedy. We’re aware of tragedy and feel the weight of it. This is what Jesus shows us in the incarnation. He is intimately aware of the tragedy we face. So as followers of Jesus, we won’t rush past tragedy but we’ll cry out in it. Our spirit will cry out to God’s Spirit: things are broken, Your people are overwhelmed, the world is not how it should be.

    The movement of peace needs to embrace mourning. Mourning causes an awareness of a world of suffering that is beyond our own experience. We’re mindful of how others are walking through suffering.

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  • Esther | moment 3

    Speaker: Lorissa Medrano

    We continue our series in the book of Esther. In chapter 3 we reach the point of the story when all hope seems lost, and evil seems sure to win. What do we do in these moments when God seems absent, and darkness seems all around us?

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  • Esther | moment 2
    Speaker: Mark Slomka
    In a book where God’s name is never mentioned, no miracle recorded, no prophecy given, or no prayer recited what are we to discover? In a book where Jews have names after the national gods and marry pagans while in morally compromising situations, what are we meant to think?! In fact there is nothing in chapter 2 and that is precisely why we need to learn the lessons God has for us from this chapter…
    Today’s Passage: Esther 2.5-23 [NLT]
    5 Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, 6 who had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, among those taken captive with Jehoiachin king of Judah.
    7 Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah (Myrtle Tree), whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This girl, who was also known as Esther, was lovely in form and features, and Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.
    8 When the king’s order and edict had been proclaimed, many girls were brought to the citadel of Susa and put under the care of Hegai. Esther also was taken to the king’s palace and entrusted to Hegai, who had charge of the harem. 9 The girl pleased him and won his favor. Immediately he provided her with her beauty treatments and special food. He assigned to her seven maids selected from the king’s palace and moved her and her maids into the best place in the harem.
    10 Esther had not revealed her nationality and family background, because Mordecai had forbidden her to do so. 16 She was taken to King Xerxes in the royal residence in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. 17 Now the king was attracted to Esther more than to any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval more than any of the other virgins. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
    18 And the king gave a great banquet, Esther’s banquet, for all his nobles and officials. He proclaimed a holiday throughout the provinces and distributed gifts with royal liberality. 19 When the virgins were assembled a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. 20 But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up.
    21 During the time Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, became angry and conspired to assassinate King Xerxes. 22 But Mordecai found out about the plot and told Queen Esther, who in turn reported it to the king, giving credit to Mordecai. 23 And when the report was investigated and found to be true, the two officials were hanged on a gallows. All this was recorded in the book of the annals in the presence of the king.
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  • Esther | moment 1
    Speaker: Vince Medrano
    The unique thing observed about the book of Esther is that God’s name is never mentioned yet we see God’s providence in the big picture of the story.  We notice that the sum of all actions show a God who is active. 
    But we’ll notice that it’s a little harder to see God in the moments He’s not explicitly mentioned.  It’s the same in our lives… we can look back over the course of 10 years and see the goodness of God, it’s harder to stop in the middle of a Thursday afternoon and discern God’s presence in that moment. 
    In this morning’s moment we’ll observe how man’s power, plans and perspective when used for self seeking pleasure will be shown as absurd.
    Today’s Passage: Esther 1:16-20 [NLT]
    16 Memucan answered the king and his nobles, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king but also every noble and citizen throughout your empire. 17 Women everywhere will begin to despise their husbands when they learn that Queen Vashti has refused to appear before the king. 18 Before this day is out, the wives of all the king’s nobles throughout Persia and Media will hear what the queen did and will start treating their husbands the same way. There will be no end to their contempt and anger.
    19 “So if it please the king, we suggest that you issue a written decree, a law of the Persians and Medes that cannot be revoked. It should order that Queen Vashti be forever banished from the presence of King Xerxes, and that the king should choose another queen more worthy than she. 20 When this decree is published throughout the king’s vast empire, husbands everywhere, whatever their rank, will receive proper respect from their wives!”
    47 min

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