Sermons by Michael Howell (Page 20)

Sermons by Michael Howell (Page 20)

Michael Howell

A hopeless situation

By the end of the book of 1 Samuel, Israel finds itself in a hopeless situation. Saul, the king upon whom they have pinned their hopes, is dead and humiliated, a failure. Israel could now see how hopeless things were apart from God’s intervention. Only once they understood this truth would they able to understand the hope that they had in David, the king in waiting. The Christian life is a little like the history of Israel at this point. In order to know the hope that Jesus brings we must first know the weight of the hopelessness of our situation before God. Our sin means we are distant from God. But there is a great source of hope in Christ. Is he your source of hope?

Our certain hope

The end of Joseph’s life is reminder to us that we can have a certain hope for our future, just as Joseph did. Listen as we conclude our series in Genesis, and be reminded again of why it is that our hope for the future is a sure and certain hope. Do you have a future hope like that?

The God who saves

Listen as we meet Asher, one of Joseph’s brothers. We’ll hear him explain what happened to him and his brothers in Egypt, and how he felt when he realised that God had been at work in everything to save His people.

King my heart

David was God’s chosen king in waiting. Everyone knew this. You’d expect that everyone would have treated him with honour and respect. Well today we meet two people who treat David in very different ways. One of them is Nabal, a fool who treats David with contempt, and pays the price. The other is Nabal’s wise wife, Abigail, who honours David as a king. The question for us is this: when it comes to responding to God’s chosen King, who will I be like, Nabal or Abigail?

A truth for the journey

Life is journey full of ups and downs. Our circumstances are always changing. Joseph knew this all too well. As we read Genesis 39, we can’t help but note that in all the circumstances he faced, one thing never changed. God was always with him, both in his times of success and in his times of difficulty. How important it it that we understand this truth for our own lives!

Childlike Faith

How do we enter the kingdom of God? Jesus says that to answer this question, we need to look at a little child. Listen as we consider what it means for us to have a childlike faith.

True thankfulness

Listen as we explore the story of the healing of the ten lepers and consider what it has to teach us about being truly thankful for what God has done for us.

A Healthy View of Prosperity

Jacob fled from Esau with nothing. In tonight’s passage we see Jacob, twenty years later, described as exceedingly prosperous (30:43). It’s very obvious that God is the giver of all of Jacob’s prosperity. But how does this passage relate to us? Listen as we consider the connections between Jacob’s prosperity and the God who gives that prosperity. Let us be reminded of how we as Christians, ought to understand our own prosperity in light of what Christ has done.

Grace for the broken

In our story tonight we find Jacob, desperate, fearful and alone, suffering the consequences of his deceptive ways. He is, in a word, broken. But it is down to this broken man that God, in his grace, reaches. He reveals himself to Jacob and makes some extraordinary promises to him. This is a story all about God’s grace, not only to Jacob, but to us as well. Listen as we are reminded that we belong to a God who has found us in our brokenness, revealed himself to us, and promised to remain with us.

Brotherly conflict

Deception, moral failure and conflict. That pretty much sums up the the story of Jacob and Esau! None of the characters in this story cover themselves in glory. And yet, one again, we see that God continues to work out his purposes despite the sinfulness of his people. Along the way we learn a couple of lessons for ourselves. Our God is a good God. There is nothing more valuable than what he has in store for us.

Covenant Confirmed

Thirteen long years after Ishmael is born, God finally speaks to Abram again. He confirms his covenant with Abram, changing his name to Abraham, promising him a son named Isaac through Sarah, and giving him the sign of circumcision. We are people of the new covenant. This new covenant involves a new kind of circumcision, the “circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit” (Rom 2:29).

Chaos & Control

Tonight we are presented with a stark contrast between mankind and God. Firstly we see Abram and Sarai make a compromise, deciding to do things their way instead of God’s. Their decision results in chaos. But then we see God intervene. On display are God’s immense compassion and his perfect control. How will we respond to a God such as this?