Stand Alone Sermons
Opportunities for Faith
March 3, 2024 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Hebrews 11:29–30
These two stories show what it looks like to trust in God's promises and God's character when obstacles seem insurmountable, and the way forward is unknown. How do we respond when we come to places in our own lives where we can’t see a way out or a way forward? Do we trust God with our lives and story? Join us as we explore both the faithfulness and power of God who works on behalf of His people to accomplish His good purposes, and the role of faith in the response of obedience for God's people as we walk through life. In all things, we'll find our hope and our peace in Jesus.
The Leaders God Chooses
November 26, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Titus 1:5–9
On Sunday, Pastor Eric walked us through Titus 1:5-9 and walked us through the ecclesiastical need for shepherds in the church, the distinctives of qualified, godly shepherds, the source of empowerment for every godly leader, and the response as God’s people.
Why It's Good When God Says "No"
October 22, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Acts 16:6–34
Pastor Eric preached from Acts 16 on Sunday. This chapter tells the story of how the Philippian church was born, and it all starts with God saying ’NO’. As the story unfolds, take note of all the good that comes from God saying no. We will take this scripture in sections, pausing long enough in each section to see God at work & let it stir us to worship.
Wisdom & Our Plans
October 1, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Proverbs 16
Decisions are part of the human experience. Making plans & deciding the path we want to take is all part of what it means to be alive. It can be fun, but it can also be debilitating depending on where you’re at in life. Sometimes it feels like we’re always being presented with big, life-altering decisions. And with those decisions come questions like: What do I do? What’s God’s will for my life? We don’t want to get it wrong and then be set on the wrong path forever… we just want to know, how can I make good decisions? In this sermon, Pastor Eric will walk us through Proverbs 16 as we pursue Jesus. There we find a clear theme of wisdom for our plans & ways (our decisions) that is woven throughout.
Vocation & How We View Each Other
September 3, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Genesis 2:15—3:20
This Sunday we were in Genesis 2-3 looking at vocation and how we view each other. My hope, as we walk together through Scripture today, is that God will soften every one of our wills to reimagine why we do what we do for work, and open our eyes to see ourselves & others as individuals who possess an inherent dignity & value not because of what we DO but because of who we are as people made in the image of God.
The Good Samaritan
July 9, 2023 • Pastor Andrew Elder • Luke 10:25–37
This Sunday we have a treat. Pastor Andrew Elder from https://www.villagebelfast.com/ is in DC and will preach God’s Word for us on Sunday. Redemption Hill has been involved in church planting in Belfast since 2012, with both Village East and Village South. You won’t want to miss Andrew’s Northern Irish accent. Even more so, you won’t want to miss what he has to share with us from the Word of God. Pastor Andrew will preach from Luke 10:25-37, “The Good Samaritan.” Often this most famous parable is taken out of its context, but when we read the whole passage we find that it is a conversation about eternal life. As Jesus responds to the teacher of the law who is trying to trap him, we see him challenging legalism and exposing the sin of self-justification. The standard of neighbour-love is one we all fall short of, but we have a TRUE Good Samaritan in Jesus, who comes to us, bind up our wounds, carries us to the place of safety and pays our bill in full. Only when we have received the grace of our Good Samaritan can we respond in the right way to his call to action - go and do likewise.
Pursuing Spiritual Maturity
May 7, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Hebrews 5:12—6:3
At the end of last Sunday's sermon, we explored some of the implications of Jesus' resurrection. One of which, was that because Jesus is risen, we can walk in newness of life. "Newness of life" speaks of a living with new allegiance as a people made new by God's grace in Christ. This new allegiance is not to self or sin, but to the word & ways of Jesus, and the ongoing ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The expectation of God, of Scripture, is that we would move on to spiritual maturity in our walks of faith. Not content with a steady diet of milk-only, but learning to eat solid food: what Scripture refers to as meat. If milk is the basic teachings of Scripture, then meat is the more complete, deeper doctrines of Scripture. As people who have been made new because of Christ's death & resurrection, we should be actively pursuing spiritual maturity. This is God's good design for His people. Join us in Hebrews 5-6 as we learn how we live into the fullness of life that God has given us in Jesus.
Where Life is Found
April 30, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Luke 24:1–10
In Christ, every Sunday is Easter Sunday. He is still risen! This week, we'll be in chapter 24 of Luke's gospel looking at the resurrection story. It's a narrative woven around 3 women, 2 angels, and 1 question. The question asked is one that has reverberated for centuries since it was first uttered: Why do you seek the living among the dead? This is a question that remains relevant for our time, our culture, our very lives. Where are we seeking to find life, fulfillment, value? How are those pursuits really going? The hope for every soul is found in the words immediately following that question: "He is not here. He is risen." The resurrection of Jesus puts our pursuits into proper perspective. Join us Sunday as we learn to identify where we might be seeking life among death and how to get our eyes onto Jesus, in whom true life is found.
Palm Sunday
April 2, 2023 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Matthew 21:1–17
Palm Sunday is the day that commemorates the coronation of King Jesus. It’s a story recorded in all four gospels where Jesus rides into the city of Jerusalem as symbolic annunciation that He is Israel’s Promised and Rightful King, the Son of David, the Anointed Redeemer of Humanity. In addition to the prophecy-fulfilling announcement of His kingship, Jesus’ arrival establishes the unambiguous ethos of His kingdom; a kingdom of righteousness, justice, healing and peace. Pastor Eric will walk us through Matthew 21:1-17 and walk through the variety of responses from everyone He encounters in this story. The account is written by Matthew’ in such a way that will elicit a response from every reader who encounters King Jesus for themselves.
Following Jesus
March 27, 2022 • Pastor Eric McPherson • Matthew 4:18–20
As Jesus called His first disciples, He called them to leave everything to follow Him. He gave a glimpse of the reality of Christian discipleship. Pastor Eric will help us to see that Jesus calls us not just to an individual pursuit, but to join Him in transcendent Kingdom work.
The God Who is Merciful and Faithful
October 31, 2021 • Eric McPherson • Genesis 20
This is a chapter highlighting the reality of our sin nature, as well as the faithfulness of God to protect His promises and show mercy to sinners. The narrative follows Abraham after the events of Sodom and Gomorrah. He’s wandered from a place of fellowship with God and has found himself in a regrettably familiar situation. In a tragic lapse of faith his actions endanger his wife, compromise his witness as a man of God, and threaten to potentially thwart God’s promise of a Messiah. Yet in spite of Abe’s unfaithfulness, God’s unrivaled faithfulness holds firm. His promises remain un-thwarted. His mercy is shown to sinners. And the hope of the gospel is alive.
Deconstruct without Drifting Away
September 5, 2021 • Pastor Bill Riedel • Hebrews 2:1
This Sunday we are in between two sermon series. It’s not often that I get a one-off chance to preach on a topic, so I’m pretty excited for it. We will take some time this Sunday to talk about Deconstruction. It feels overwhelming to see and hear the stories of people deconstructing their faith and, so often, walking away from any belief in Jesus or connection to any church. There are lots of good reasons and good questions that are raised along the way. I hope to help us all see that we ought to lean into the hard questions, but also to give us a grid for how to deconstruct the ways people and institutions have fallen short, while still being able to cling to the hope we have in Jesus.
Good Friday Service
April 2, 2021 • Pastor Bill Riedel
Throughout the ages, the church has gathered on the Friday before Easter to remember the path Christ took to the cross. Good Friday is an invitation for us to stop and reflect upon Jesus as He lived out the lowest of human experience. It is a call to sit in the dust, hand in hand with our own doubts and sorrows. This Good Friday, we gather as a church to reflect upon the sufferings of Christ, see the great cost of our sin, and foster an anticipation for Easter Sunday.
