Messages
A collection of sermons and messages Mark has given over the years
New messages are added as they become available
Aug 31, 2025, 10:30 AM
We are called out from the world to live in faith and obedience to Jesus Christ, to a life that stands apart from the ways of the world, that might even be considered the exact opposite of what the world believes. Our enemies—the devil, his fallen angels and sin living in our flesh—are hell-bent on keeping us from trusting God and living in His ways. We must stand firm and hold fast to all God teaches and all He wants us to be. He has given us His power and spiritual armor to hold fast to God and His ways, to hold His ground. There is one more piece of equipment He has given for our success: Prayer. It is a powerful tool for our good and the advancement of God’s mission. From Ephesians 6:18-24.
Aug 24, 2025, 10:30 AM
We saw last week that our most basic mission is to stand firm on God’s Word and all He teaches, to hold fast to the Gospel and all the rest of Scripture, to believe it all and live by it. In so doing, as a church, we will be fully equipped and enabled to complete the Great Commission, if not personally, then by the fully-trained members we send out from our congregation. We saw last week that we have access to the power of God and need to take hold of it. In verses 14 to 17, Paul lists more equipment God has provided to everyone who believes in His Son. As we walk through this armor, take stock: Are you missing anything? Does any piece need strengthening? Take note and make plans to close any gaps. From Ephesians 6:14-17.
Aug 17, 2025, 10:30 AM
The word for “submission” that we’ve been reviewing for weeks now comes out of a miliary context. It seems now Paul presses forward into the military illustration to give this fellowship their most basic mission. To preach the Gospel to all creation and make disciples of all nations is the commission given to every believer in Jesus Christ. To accomplish that, it means each generation of believers needs to faithfully pass on all they have received from those who came before them, beginning with Jesus’ Apostles. Thankfully we have the Scriptures and the gift of literacy to help us correct any errors in what was imparted to us by those who came before. Interestingly, the commission Paul gives this church is not the Great Commission, but a commission to stand firm, to hold fast. They are like a fort on the frontier, a beacon of light in a land of darkness. They must not let their light go out! From Ephesians 6:10-13.
Aug 10, 2025, 10:30 AM
We’ve talked a lot about submission and obedience over the last many weeks, in particular who we’re called to submit to, why we’re required to submit to these people, and the importance of our submission to the message of the Gospel. There is one more relationship that Paul is led by the Lord to address: slaves and slave-owners. Through Paul’s teaching, God gives us the character and nature of true submission. It is instruction we desperately need in our day and age. From Ephesians 6:5-9.
Aug 3, 2025, 10:30 AM
When Paul and Silas promised the Philippian jailer that he and all his household would be saved if he believed in the Lord Jesus, there’s more there than we’re prepared to see. Dads are key to the salvation and sanctification of their children. If you and I want our children to spend eternity with us in heaven, then we must accept and conform ourselves to God’s design for the family, including and especially today’s truth and instruction. This command isn’t just about fathers; it’s about the whole structure of the family. From Ephesians 6:4.
Jul 27, 2025, 10:30 AM
If you haven’t already noticed, no matter who Paul is addressing, we can all learn a thing or two from the instructions given. Today is no different. Or maybe it is. Today we turn to Paul’s instruction for children. It’s pretty obvious, simple and direct. Is it really so hard to understand? Does it really require a whole Sunday message on its own? Listen and see. This command is for you and me, as surely as it is for the little ones among us. From Ephesians 6:1-3.
Jul 20, 2025, 10:30 AM
God calls husbands to love their wives in such a way that makes her salvation and sanctification as of highest importance in his life—at least as far as it depends on him. Of course, he can only succeed if his wife submits to and follows his lead. Here, God leads Paul to return to his “body” illustration that was introduced in his command to wives to submit to their own husband as their “head.” He expands the illustration in such a way that further cements the idea that husband as “head” means leader, ruler, director. It also reinforces a husband’s responsibility to live to prepare his wife for heaven and fleshes out how he can and should do that. From Ephesians 5:28-33a.
Jul 6, 2025, 10:30 AM
We saw last week that a husband is called to agape love his wife. We distinguished that from eros love—physical, romantic love—and phileo love, which is built on shared experiences. Those two come fairly naturally and do not need a command. But agape love, which we saw is primarily concerned with seeking the well-being of the one loved—as God defines well-being—this love must be commanded. It does not come naturally. It means the husband is first concerned for his wife’s salvation, then for her sanctification. Verses 26 and 27 make that clear and point the way to true agape love. We can all learn from this! From Ephesians 5:26-27.
Jun 29, 2025, 10:30 AM
Husbands, now it’s our turn. I’m using another old word in my title, “husbandry.” We use the word today to describe the roles and responsibilities of those working in the agricultural sector, but the original meaning encompassed the roles and duties of a husband, and that’s my usage here. The main command to husbands in the marital relationship is to love our wives. Paul gives two illustrations, and both serve to give a clear picture of what it means to love your wife. Strangely, however, the Church today has by and large missed the point, and distorted the husband’s responsibility, turning the whole marriage relationship upside-down! As we saw with the wife, so with the husband: When we misunderstand and misapply God’s teaching here, we overthrow the picture and testimony God intended the marital relationship to be. We encourage believers and unbelievers alike to disregard God. Let’s see if we can cut through the fog and distortions, and identify what God actually expects of us husbands. From Ephesians 5:25.
Jun 22, 2025, 10:30 AM
Last week, we looked at Paul’s main command to wives: to submit to your husbands. We saw that a wife’s submission to her husband was tied directly to her submission to Christ. She is supposed to submit to her husband as she submits to Christ, which hopefully is “right away, all the way and with a happy heart!” We also saw that that’s the same thing required of every believer in their relationship to Jesus Christ. Today we’re going to see some “whys” of her submission, and why a wife’s submission to her husband is not a temporary, cultural command, but one for all ages and peoples, at least on this side of eternity. From Ephesians 5:23-24, 33b.