Latest Sermons

All humans have a desire for home, a longing to be in the place and with the people that feels like “home,” especially for the holidays. But this innate desire is part of a longing for a home we are truly made for. In Isaiah 35, God promises Israel to bring them back home to […]

Although believers come from different cultures, backgrounds, and consciences, they are called to live in unity by treating disputable matters with grace and love.  Paul places responsibility on the “strong” to lay down their freedoms for the sake of the “weak”, modeling the self-giving sacrifice of Christ.  The ultimate goal is a generous family of […]

As we begin in Esther, we read about the introduction of Esther, or Hadassah, to the court of the King of Persia. Johnny talks about the importance of good stories, life in the king’s court, and how God often works in simple and unremarkable ways through simple and unremarkable people.

In Nehemiah 9, we see the people of Israel go through a confession of their sin after the Feast of Booths, as well as a prayer from Ezra, going through the Old Testament, showing God’s blessings followed by Israel’s unfaithfulness. Johnny talks about the importance of trusting God in times of wealth and of poverty.

Nehemiah is faced with a conflict within the community. The poor, facing burdensome taxes and a famine, have had to take out loans but their creditors, their fellow Jews, are exploiting them with exorbitant terms. Many have lost their lands, vineyards, homes, their very source of income and identity, and some have had to sell […]

In Ezra 7 and 8, the priest and scribe, Ezra, arrives on the scene for the first time in the book. Ezra is authorized by the Persian king, Artaxerxes, to lead a 2nd wave of exiles from Babylon back to Jerusalem to see to the restoration of faithfulness to the Law of God. How did […]

This week, we read about the first steps the returning exiles take towards rebuilding the temple. Johnny recognizes the work it takes to rebuild this temple, and the laments of the oldest exiles as they compare the new foundations to Solomon’s temple.

As we begin the series on Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, Johnny takes us through the beginning of Ezra, and the history surrounding the Israelite’s exile in Babylon and Persia.

In this passage, we see Paul and Barnabas called to be missionaries to the Gentile Church. We see Paul preaching in the synagogue at Antioch in Galatia, and we learn about the importance of listening to God’s calling.

On the 2nd Sunday of Easter, CCV begins a series using the Lectionary Year C readings, focusing on The Acts of the Apostles. In Acts 5, Peter and the Apostles are arrested for preaching Jesus. But when the Angel of the Lord sets them free and calls them to preach the gospel in the Temple […]

Easter Sermon: In a culture of an increasing hopelessness, the Christian hope, grounded in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ offers a real hope–Jesus did rise bodily from the dead; and a living hope with ongoing implications for lives. The Christian living hope is upside-down, forward-back, and inside-out.

In Luke 20: 19-26, we hear Jesus say “Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” Johnny explains the history behind those testing Jesus, the meaning of Jesus’ statement, and what this means about how we live our lives.