THE CHAPEL at Pasadena Podcast

In this sermon, Pastor Steven explores Paul's contrast between the old and new covenants in 2 Corinthians 3, revealing how the glory of God is more fully displayed through Jesus Christ. While the law exposes our sin and condemnation, the gospel reveals God's mercy, grace, and the freedom found through His Spirit. Through Christ, the veil is removed, allowing us to behold God's glory and be transformed into His likeness. As the Spirit continues this work in us, the church is called to reflect that glory to the world, shining the light of Jesus through the proclamation of His Word and the testimony of transformed lives.

In this Vision Sunday sermon, Pastor Steven reflects on Jesus’ compassion for the crowds and His declaration that “the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.” The enormous needs around us can seem overwhelming, but Jesus calls His church to see people as He sees them—with compassion—and to pray for more laborers. That prayer also becomes a call to go: to bring the grace and truth of Jesus into our neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, and communities, becoming part of God’s work of spreading the light of Christ throughout our city and beyond.

Episode Title: The Aroma of Christ

Podcast Description:
In this sermon, Pastor Steven explores Paul’s picture of the church as the “aroma of Christ”—carrying the truth and grace of the gospel into the world. Through Christ’s sacrifice, repentance, and forgiveness, we see how the gospel can carry the fragrance of both death and life, calling us to reflect Jesus through sincere truth, radical grace, and love for one another.

In this opening sermon through 2 Corinthians, Pastor Steven introduces Paul’s deeply personal letter to a church marked by both reconciliation and lingering division. Through Paul’s suffering, sincerity, and love for the Corinthians, we see a vision of ministry rooted not in our own strength, but in God’s grace. At the heart of that ministry are two gifts: the promises of God, which find their “Yes” in Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, who establishes, seals, and empowers God’s people. Together, they call us to experience the grace and truth of Jesus and reflect that grace and truth to the world around us.

In this sermon, Pastor Dave explores Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman in John 4 and what it teaches us about being a community on mission. Through a new kind of water, worship, work, and welcome, Jesus crosses barriers to offer life and belonging to someone who would normally have been considered an outsider. His example challenges us to practice true hospitality by making room in our lives for strangers and people different from us. Ultimately, the gospel reminds us that Jesus became a stranger so that we could be welcomed into the family of God. 

In this final sermon through 1 Samuel, Pastor Steven follows David into one of the darkest moments of his life. Returning to Ziklag to find the city destroyed, his family taken captive, and even his own men turning against him, David is overwhelmed with distress. Yet rather than allowing fear to drive him away from God, David “strengthened himself in the Lord.” His response shows us what it means to face fear by remembering God’s promises, choosing obedience, and bringing our fears honestly before Him. Ultimately, those promises find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ, whose death and resurrection give us every reason to trust in God’s unfailing love. 

In this sermon, Pastor Steven follows Saul into the final and tragic chapter of his reign. Overwhelmed by fear and unable to hear from God, Saul turns to the necromancer of Endor in a desperate search for assurance, setting the stage for his final defeat. His story reveals the danger of allowing fear to master us and offers a contrast between fear-driven disobedience and trust in God. Ultimately, we are invited to bring our fears to Jesus, whose cross and resurrection reveal the wisdom, power, and love of the God who is worthy of our trust. 

In this sermon, Pastor Steven follows David through his final confrontation with Saul and into the land of the Philistines. After years of exile, David has learned that trusting God means more than waiting for deliverance—it means obeying Him even when obedience involves risk, uncertainty, or damage to his own reputation. David’s willingness to entrust his life and future to God ultimately points us to Jesus, the greater King who endured rejection, slander, and suffering to save the very people who rejected Him and secure for them an everlasting kingdom.

In this sermon, Pastor Dave explores Mary’s extravagant act of generosity toward Jesus and what it reveals about a community shaped by the gospel. Through the contrast between Mary and Judas, we see that true generosity gives freely without expecting anything in return and flows from recognizing the generosity we have first received from God. As a community on mission, we are called to make generosity a way of life—giving to God, meeting the needs of others, and developing a habit of open-handed living.

In this sermon, Pastor Steven explores the story of David, Nabal, and Abigail, where a moment of anger nearly leads David down a path of vengeance and bloodshed. Through Abigail’s courage and wisdom, God reminds David of the kind of king he is called to be—one who lays down the sword, entrusts justice to the Lord, and responds to evil with faith rather than vengeance. Her intervention ultimately points us to Jesus, the true King who entrusted Himself fully to the Father and suffered for the sake of His people.