Messages
A collection of sermons and messages Mark has given over the years
New messages are added as they become available
Sep 13, 2025, 4:42 AM
We are all alike under sentence of death. We all deserve to die; we all alike deserve eternal condemnation.
We know we have done wrong, but we look around at one another and easily find someone who has done far worse than we have. So we think we're not that bad. There are really evil people who deserve horrible punishment, but not us. We've done some things wrong, but we're not really evil, just mistaken from time to time. We think we're actually mostly good.
May 10, 2025, 9:30 PM
Memorial message given at Vicki Mason's Celebration of Life, held at Noelridge Park Church, Cedar Rapids, IA, on May 10th, 2025. "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." (Psalm 116:15, NIV)
May 4, 2025, 5:30 PM
We Christians talk about eternal security. We talk about salvation by faith alone. But I do not think most of us have a good understanding of what that really means. Paul warns us not to grieve the Holy Spirit, but in the same breath he tells us we have been sealed by the Spirit for the day of redemption. If our salvation is secure, what do we have to worry about? Isn’t God forgiving? Isn’t the Holy Spirit also so patient and kind and forgiving? From Ephesians 4:30.
Apr 13, 2025, 5:30 PM
People sometimes ask, “What does it mean to ‘believe’?” And that is a very good question. So often we think it is just this internal thing, a heart thing, a mind thing. And it certainly includes that. True belief comes in through the ears or eyes, is processed in the mind, then settles in the heart. From there it flows outward, changing the true believer from the inside out. False belief stays in the head and never really reaches the heart, so nothing changes. There are many illustrations of true belief, and Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem—what we remember on Palm Sunday—provides a powerful one. But like every illustration, the real meaning can be missed or abused. From Luke 19:37-44 and 11-27.
Mar 16, 2025, 4:30 PM
In Ephesians so far we have seen the amazing love and kindness of God toward us. We are not the same people we were before we heard and believed the Gospel, and we have so many more wonderful things to look forward to than we could ever find in this life. We are a privileged people, chosen and saved and eternally blessed by the Lord. But we were made new in order to walk in the good works which God prepared in advance for us. Our gratitude should overflow in a humility that is eager to learn the ways of God. And God has given us five kinds of trainers to grow us all into His likeness. But the greatest hindrance to knowing and walking in this new life does not come from outside us, but as the saying goes, “We are our own worst enemy.” From Ephesians 4:17-24.
Feb 9, 2025, 11:30 AM
It’s hard for us to understand what it’s like to grow up without hope and without God in this world, but the Gentiles of old understood. God had come near through the Gospel. Jesus’ death and resurrection were not for the Jews only, but also for the “repulsive,” rejected Gentiles. Jesus’ death and resurrection wiped away the sin that condemned us—and shattered the wall of hostility among the Jews and in the Law that kept people like us from any hope of eternal life. If only we could truly, deeply grasp this truth to the very core of our being! How would it change us? Paul’s not done marveling at what God has done for us Gentiles, so neither are we. Maybe we can get a little closer to the amazement Paul had for this miracle! From Ephesians 3:1-21.
Jan 26, 2025, 11:30 AM
How are you doing with this idea of being called a saint? We’ve seen the incredible blessings God has given us in Christ, for His own glory. We’ve also seen the things Paul prays for saints, that they would continue to know God better and grow in understanding of our hope in Christ, the riches of us saints as God’s inheritance and His incomparably great power for us. Do you really think God can’t in a moment remake you into a holy person, and by His indwelling Spirit teach you to walk in His ways? The thing we fear—and it is right to fear it—is our own evil heart, and how easily we can twist God’s blessing into a curse among men. The real problem isn’t God’s making us holy, but our ego. So Paul here walks us through several ego-bashing points, in order to bring us into a right view of ourselves so that we can truly appreciate what God has done for us. From Ephesians 2:1-10.
Jan 12, 2025, 11:30 AM
If you are a child of God, then you are a saint. On the one hand, that title terrifies us. On the other, it is the sign of God’s great favor toward you. Can you live the life of a God-pleasing saint or will you display the arrogant hypocrisy you fear? As mentioned last week, it depends on whether you recognize the gift you’ve been given or somehow think you’ve attained sainthood by your own efforts. To be sure, diligence is required, but to what end? To what purpose? Who do you glorify in your pursuit of this godliness? God, through Paul, shows us the way. From Ephesians 1:2-14.
Dec 29, 2024, 11:30 AM
From the exile to the Christ, that intervening 500 and some years, is incredibly chaotic. Little is known of the men listed in Jesus' genealogy between Jeconiah and Himself. But much is known of the history of those centuries. Somehow, through the chaos, not only would God preserve His people, but He would bring His Messiah in fulfillment of promises that grow more inconceivable as the generations pass. God laid out His plans in remarkable detail, but would anyone be listening? Would anyone be watching? His plans for Christ's second Advent are similarly revealed. Is anyone paying attention? From Matthew 1:12-25.
Nov 17, 2024, 11:30 AM
What are you devoted to? We're called to be devoted to God, but what does that look like? We have a clue in Paul's repeated command that believers to devoted to doing what is good. It comes up twice in this last chapter. We already have an idea what that looks like, but Paul fleshes it out even more in these few verses. Come see what he has to teach us, and check how you're doing in your devotion to God. From Titus 3:1-15.