In this sermon from Matthew 2, Pastor Matt explores how the star that guided the wise men reveals a powerful truth: God wants to be near to us, and nothing can stop Him. This message invites us to look both backward to Christ’s first coming and forward to His return, discovering how hope reshapes the way we live right now.

You’ll hear:

• Why hope changes human behavior

• What the star teaches us about God’s promises

• Why Jesus came in humility and darkness

• What Advent really means beyond Christmas Day

• How Christ’s return should shape our choices today

• Why Jesus is the Light in our darkness and the Bread of Life

• How Christmas is not just comfort—but a mission

This is a message about certainty in an uncertain world, light in the darkest places, and a Savior who will come again.

Scripture: Matthew 2:1–3, 9–10

If this message encouraged you, like the video, subscribe, and share it with someone who needs hope this Christmas season.

What if the heaviest thing in your life isn’t what happened to you—but your refusal to let it go?

In this Christ the King / Thanksgiving message from Isaiah 65, Pastor Matt Ayars explores God’s promise of “new heavens and a new earth” and what that means for our past, our pain, and our future. Starting with a lighthearted Thanksgiving reflection (yes, including Adam and Eve, Louisiana, and a cast iron bathtub!), he moves into a deeply pastoral call to stop reliving “the crud” and start living in the joy of new creation.

In this sermon, Pastor Matt talks about:

• Why we can’t change other people or our circumstances—but we can change

• How God doesn’t just redeem parts of our lives, but all of it

• The danger of building our identity around our wounds and grievances

• What it means to “let it go” at the cross—really

• How Christians can resist an angry culture with the weapon of joy

• The hope that our pain is real, but not final or forever

If you’re carrying something heavy—old church hurt, family wounds, fear, anger, or grief—this message invites you to bring it to Jesus, trust His strength to lift what you can’t, and step into the gladness and joy of the new creation He is already bringing to life in you.

🙌 If this sermon encourages you, consider liking, subscribing, and sharing it with someone who needs hope heading into the holidays.

When we think about the cross, most of us picture Jesus taking on the penalty of our sin so we don’t have to—our guilt wiped away, the debt paid in full. That’s gloriously true. But in Isaiah 52–53, we see something even deeper: Jesus doesn’t just carry the penalty of sin, he enters into the consequences of sin—our shame, humiliation, betrayal, estrangement, and relational wreckage—and absorbs it into himself so that we can be healed.

In this message from Isaiah’s “Suffering Servant” passage, Pastor Matt explores how Christ steps under the rug instead of letting anything stay hidden. He doesn’t numb our pain; he goes into it. We talk about how sin is not merely a legal problem but a relational one, how broken relationships and deep wounds become “cursed ground” in our hearts, and how Jesus wants to heal that ground so real fruit can grow. This sermon presses into the hard question: will we let Jesus not only take our penalty, but also our humiliation—and will we join him in costly forgiveness so that others can be set free?

If you’ve carried deep relational hurt, resentment, or shame—and if you’re hungry for more than “I’m forgiven, but I’m still not healed”—this message is for you.

Subscribe for more sermons and teachings, and if this encouraged you, share it with someone who needs to be reminded: he doesn’t just forgive us. He heals us.

A sermon on Isaiah 9:2-8.

A sermon on Isaiah 6, the holiness of God, and the hope for change.

Pastor Matt shares powerful stories from the persecuted church in Nigeria, teaching at West Africa Theological Seminary, and discovering the secret of contentment from Philippians 4—showing how obedience, Scripture, and God’s provision sustain believers through persecution and hardship.

Scott Stogner preaches on the Joy of Pressing on!

True joy isn’t found in pride, comfort, or control—it’s found in humility. In this message from Philippians 2:1–11, Pastor Matt Ayars unpacks how humility is the key to restoring joy in our lives. Joy flows from reconciled relationships, and reconciliation requires humility. Joy grows as we serve others, and service demands humility. Joy deepens as we obey God’s call, and obedience, too, begins with humility. At the center of it all stands Jesus—who humbled himself even to death on a cross. His example shows us that the way up in God’s kingdom is always down, and that lasting joy is born in a surrendered heart.

Hungry people don’t always know they’re hungry—until they catch a whiff. In this message, Pastor Matt shows how the Spirit is stirring a hunger for Jesus in our culture and how the church must steward the gospel well.

We unpack what that looks like: knowing the gospel clearly, living it with integrity, sharing it wisely, guarding it from distortion, and investing it in people. Just like the aroma of fresh bread draws us to the table, our lives should carry the aroma of Christ that awakens hunger for him.

We live in a world of endless hurry—overflowing calendars, constant distractions, and an addiction to busyness. Yet the irony is clear: despite more time-saving devices than ever before, we feel like we have less time. In this message, Pastor Matt Ayars explores what it means to give our time back to God, to set healthy boundaries, and to resist the storm of boundaryless chaos.Drawing from Haitian culture, the biblical vision of Sabbath, and insights from John Mark Comer’s The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, this sermon challenges us to slow down, simplify, and embrace silence, solitude, Sabbath, and slowness as spiritual practices.How we spend our time is how we spend our lives—and who we become. Jesus not only calls us to obey his teaching but to adopt his unhurried lifestyle. Let’s stop wasting time and rediscover life as God intended.