Psalm 22
SERIES: Psalms: Cries of the Heart The Cry of Faith SPEAKER: Paul T. Stolwyk Introduction: One of the people who went with our Cornerstone Church plant a few years ago was an elder named Paul Koenig. For those of you who don’t know him, Paul is wonderfully honest about himself and very frank about life. He does not mince words about anything. He has a way of saying things that are true, very pointed, and very memorable. One time, I called him to get…
Psalm 27
SERIES: Psalms, Cries of the Heart The Cry of Fear SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: It’s a delight to be back worshiping with you this morning for the first time since June 15. I want to thank you for praying for me during my travels, and particularly during the past three weeks when I was in Venezuela. I sensed your prayers many times, and I credit those prayers for the fact that we experienced no mishaps and no illnesses to speak of. I also…
Psalm 32
SERIES: Psalms, Cries of the Heart The Cry of the Guilty Conscience SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: We live in the “me” generation, the day of the Boomers, the Busters, and the GenXers. Our age has seen the acceptance of such brilliant farsighted wisdom as, “If it feels good, do it.” And we’re known for such profound musical themes as, “I did it my way.” Not surprisingly, guilt receives a lot of bad press in our society. Current popular psychology gives one the impression…
Psalm 49
SERIES: Psalms, Cries of the Heart The Cry for Riches SCRIPTURE: Psalm 49 SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: There are no rich people here at First Free—at least not filthy rich. You used to be rich if you were a millionaire, but a mere millionaire is a nobody today. There are nearly 4 million of them in the U.S. alone. Back in 1982 when Forbes compiled its first list of the 400 richest Americans, it took a minimum of $100 million to make…
2 Samuel 12:1-14, Psalm 51
SERIES: A Person After God’s Heart He Said He Was Wrong SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: John R. W. Stott, one of the great evangelical thinkers of our day, has stated, “Christianity is the only religion in the world which takes sin seriously and offers a satisfactory remedy for it.”[i] I believe that is absolutely true. Examine the great religions of the world–Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism, Islam, Mormonism, spiritism–and none even comes close to the moral standards set down in the Bible or offers a…
Psalm 90
SERIES: Psalms, Cries of the Heart The Cry of Futility SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: I heard on the radio last week that of the top ten most frequently prescribed drugs in the United States, three are anti-depressants. They are prescribed for a wide variety of ailments, but the most common is depression. Obviously, there are millions and millions of Americans who are confronted regularly with a sense of the futility of life. Even those who are not subject to depression are often…
Psalm 99
SERIES: Psalms: The Cry of the Heart The Cry of Worship SPEAKER: Paul T. Stolwyk The Psalms contain the cries of God’s people to their God. As we have seen over the last few weeks, God’s people cry out to God for all sorts of reasons. Injustice prompts us to cry out to God in confusion. Pain causes us to cry out in faith. Sin causes us to cry out in confession. At different times in its history, Israel had leaders who firmly understood…
Psalm 127
SERIES: Psalms, Cries of the Heart Straight Arrows SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Note: This was a fifth Sunday, and the service was devoted to musical worship, baptism, child dedication, communion, and a brief message. Introduction: We’re delighted to have our families worshiping together this morning. The Children’s Ministry is taking a one-week break between Passport to Adventure and the Fall Sunday School program, and therefore the children are here with us in the service this morning. We welcome you and we hope you enjoy…
1 Samuel 1-3
SERIES: Leadership in Hard Times The Difference a Godly Home Makes SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: It’s good to be back with you this morning after fulfilling a life-long dream of visiting Egypt. Several previous attempts to go there had been scuttled by Mideast politics, but this one went off without a hitch. We (Saba Khalil, Brad Baraks, Mark Friz, and I) enjoyed wonderful hospitality and filled our eyes and minds with the magnificence of a civilization that was already ancient when…
1 Samuel 4-7
SERIES: Leadership in Hard Times A Boy Named Ichabod, A Stone Named Ebenezer SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus DATE: May 23, 2004 Introduction: Have you ever met a boy named Ichabod? I doubt it. The fictional character, Ichabod Crane, in Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, is the last one I ever heard of, and he was such a despicable character that I suppose all parents since the time of Washington Irving have studiously avoided “Ichabod” when trying to find the right name for their…
1 Samuel 8
SERIES: Leadership in Hard Times How to Handle Rejection SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: Rejection. Is there anything in all of life that is harder to handle than rejection? I don’t know about you, but I have experienced a profound sense of rejection several times in my life. Once was in Little League. I remember it well, because my dad was there–a rare treat because he had two full-time jobs–one as a pastor and another as a Bible College administrator. I was playing right field (you…
1 Samuel 12, 13
SERIES: Leadership in Hard Times The Difference Integrity Makes SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus Introduction: 1 Samuel is a book about leadership, both positive and negative, among God’s people. We began in chapter 1 by observing the difference a godly home makes in the development of leadership. Today, in the fifth message in our series, we will look at the difference integrity makes in the exercise of leadership. Please follow along as I read portions of 1 Samuel 12 and 13: Samuel said to all Israel,…