Encountering Jesus

Looking Up and Living On

December 28, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 24:50–53

This sermon emphasizes the often-overlooked significance of Jesus’ ascension, teaching that it completes Christ’s earthly work and confirms His present reign as our High Priest, guaranteeing believers full access and acceptance before God. The ascension also makes possible the coming of the Holy Spirit, who indwells believers, empowers holy living, assures salvation, and enables the church to fulfill its global mission. Ultimately, the message calls believers not merely to believe in Christ’s finished work, but to live daily Spirit-filled lives as sent witnesses until Christ returns.

Celebrating the Greatest Story Ever Told

December 21, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 2:1–20

Pastor McKinley’s sermon presents the Christmas story as the greatest story ever told—one foretold through Old Testament prophecy, fulfilled in real history, and announced by angels to unlikely witnesses—revealing God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ. It emphasizes that Christmas is not merely sentimental but marks the beginning of God’s rescue mission, culminating in the cross and resurrection, bringing peace, forgiveness, and restored relationship with God. Ultimately, the message calls listeners to personally receive this gift, allowing Christ to bring meaning, wholeness, and eternal hope to their lives.

Encountering the Unexpected

December 14, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 1:26–37, Matthew 1:18–25

Pastor McKinley weaves together a recent pastoral trip to Israel with the Christmas story to emphasize that God often works through the unexpected to accomplish His redemptive purposes, even amid suffering, conflict, and disruption. Drawing from Luke 1 and Matthew 1, Pastor teaches how Mary and Joseph’s lives were radically interrupted by God’s plan, calling them—and believers today—to surrender trustfully when circumstances don’t make sense, because God is always faithful even when unpredictable. Ultimately, the message centers on Christmas as the fulfillment of God’s providence: Jesus, the God-man, was born to save humanity from sin, offering forgiveness, eternal life, and hope to all who believe.

Waling with God and Serving Him

December 7, 2025 • Dr Robert Morgan • Luke 1

Dr Robert Morgan teaches that God has not forgotten His people or their prayers, using the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth to show how God works powerfully through faithful lives even after long seasons of waiting. He emphasizes that believers must trust the absolute truth of Scripture, pursue daily personal holiness, and remain persistent in prayer in order to be used significantly by God. The message concludes with a call for renewed commitment, reminding listeners that no matter their age or season of life, God still has meaningful work for them to do.

Choosing to Let Go

November 30, 2025 • Austin Anderson • Luke 18:18–30

The message uses the story of the rich young ruler in Luke 18 to show that no one can earn eternal life through good works, because God’s standard of righteousness exposes the sinfulness of every human heart. Jesus calls His followers to surrender anything that competes for lordship in their lives, promising that although following Him requires sacrifice, it leads to true, abundant, and eternal life. Ultimately, what is impossible for us to accomplish—our salvation—has been fully accomplished by Jesus through His death and resurrection, and believers are called to trust Him completely.

Developing a Heart of Gratitude

November 23, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 17:11–19

The sermon reflects on the story of the ten lepers in Luke 17, emphasizing that while all were physically healed, only one returned to Jesus in gratitude—and that this thankful response revealed a deeper, saving faith. Pastor McKinley uses the passage to illustrate humanity’s desperate need for mercy, Christ’s decisive work of grace, and the transformative power of returning to Him with a grateful heart. He concludes by urging believers to cultivate daily gratitude—especially in hardship—as the proper response to God’s continual mercy, grace, and salvation.

Learning to Pay It Forward

November 16, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 12:15–48

Pastor McKinley teaches that Jesus warns against the deception of greed, reminding us that life does not consist in the abundance of possessions but in being “rich toward God.” He emphasizes that instead of living in worry or dependence on government, Christians are called to trust God’s care, work responsibly, and practice generous stewardship that invests in eternity. Ultimately, because Christ has “paid it forward” through the cross, believers are called to live with grateful, open-handed generosity that blesses others and advances God’s kingdom.

Observing the Power of Prayer

November 9, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 11:1–13

Pastor David McKinley’s sermon from Luke 11:1–13 emphasizes the essential nature of prayer in the life of a believer, modeled after Jesus’ own devotion to prayer. He outlines five key practices: honoring God’s power (“Father, hallowed be Your name”), longing for His presence (“Your kingdom come”), trusting His provision (“Give us each day our daily bread”), seeking His pardon and protection (“Forgive us our sins... lead us not into temptation”), and waiting on His wisdom through persistent faith. McKinley concludes by affirming God’s goodness and promise to hear and answer prayer, urging believers and the church to live in continual, dependent communion with Him.

Finding Grace in a Desolate Place

November 2, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 9:12–21

Pastor David McKinley’s sermon focuses on Luke 9 and the feeding of the 5,000 to illustrate that God delights in using His people to meet the needs of others. He emphasizes three key truths: God’s divine compassion—He sees, knows, and cares for every need; God’s divine expectation—He calls believers to act in faith and generosity to serve others; and God’s divine satisfaction—Jesus alone provides abundantly and fulfills the deepest needs of the human heart. Pastor McKinley encourages the church to trust God’s provision, live open-handedly, and keep every act of ministry centered on Jesus, the true Bread of Life.

The Power of Forgiveness

October 26, 2025 • Bret Legg • Luke 7:36–50

The sermon, titled “The Power of Forgiveness,” draws from Luke 7:36–50 and contrasts the responses of a self-righteous Pharisee and a repentant woman who anoints Jesus’ feet. Pastor Bret Legg teaches that forgiveness is required for everyone, received through faith in Christ alone, and should produce visible results—a transformed life marked by humility, gratitude, and love. He concludes by urging listeners to recognize how deeply they’ve been forgiven and to live out that forgiveness through wholehearted devotion to God and others.

Responding to Those Who Doubt

October 19, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 7:18–23, Luke 7:29–30

This sermon, drawn from Luke 7:18–28, explores the reality of doubt in the life of believers through the example of John the Baptist, who questioned whether Jesus was truly the Messiah while imprisoned. Pastor McKinley teaches that doubt often arises when our expectations of God don’t align with our experiences, but faith can be strengthened by remembering the evidence of God’s grace, His Word, and His past faithfulness. Ultimately, he encourages believers to move from defiance to dependence—trusting that even when understanding fails, God’s mercy never wavers and His grip on His children never loosens.

Uncovering the Pharisee in Me

October 12, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 6:1–11

Pastor David McKinley uses Luke 6:1–11 to challenge believers to examine their own hearts for traces of hypocrisy and self-righteousness. Pastor McKinley contrasts Jesus’ mercy and compassion with the Pharisees’ legalism, warning that presumption, misplaced passion, and pride can turn sincere faith into judgmental religion. He concludes that true righteousness is not found in outward rule-keeping but in humble dependence on God’s grace, urging believers to let Christ transform their hearts rather than measure their holiness by others’ sins.

Answering the Call to Follow

October 5, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 9:23–26, Luke 5:1–11

Pastor David McKinley’s sermon contrasts a “moment” and a “movement,” using Luke 5’s story of Jesus calling Peter, James, and John as a picture of how a single act of obedience can ignite lifelong transformation. He explains that Jesus’ miraculous catch of fish was not about success in fishing but about calling followers who would carry His message forward and build His church through faith and obedience. Pastor McKinley concludes that following Christ requires forsaking personal ambition, embracing sacrifice, and living unashamedly for Jesus, turning moments of encounter into movements of lasting impact.

Facing the Tensions of Temptation

September 28, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 4:1–13

Pastor McKinley begins by recalling how Warren Church members embodied Christ’s love in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, meeting physical and emotional needs in their community. He then turns to Luke 4, showing how Jesus resisted temptation in the wilderness to teach that storms and temptations are inevitable but traceable, predictable, and overcome only by God’s Word and the Holy Spirit rather than self-reliance. Finally, he urges believers to draw near to Christ—whose death and resurrection break sin’s power—so they can find both forgiveness when they fall and victory as the gospel produces obedience in their lives.

Understanding the Significance of Baptism

September 21, 2025 • David H. McKinley • Luke 3:15–21

Pastor McKinley teaches from Luke 3 on Jesus’ baptism, explaining that this moment publicly declared His identity as the Messiah, fulfilled John the Baptist’s priestly role, depicted Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice for sinners, and revealed the Trinity’s work in salvation. Baptism, he emphasizes, does not save but serves as the believer’s first step of discipleship and a public testimony of repentance, lordship, and identification with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. He challenges listeners to examine their own baptism and faith response, calling the church to unity, obedience, and disciple-making grounded in the gospel’s grace.

Augusta Campus