REMINDER: Worship at Bishop O'Connell High School this week

The Bible says that work is intrinsic to human health - we need to be working, and through our work serving others. Diligence in our work is essential.

The Easter morning experience of Mary, Peter, and the others makes perfect sense as they walked the four steps toward faith in the risen Lord. To believe having see is good; to believe without having seen is even better.

Wisdom is rare nowadays, but is at the heart of Christian character. Wisdom means knowing how things really are, and how things really work, and what decisions to make in light of this. Wisdom begins with knowing Christ.

Sometime our disappointments are part of God's larger plan - learning to trust God in pain is one of God's biggest lessons.

We celebrate Christ as King on this Sunday, and note how he’s a king who loves us when we fail.

A topical message about God's sovereign rule in spite of great evil in the world; a call for repentance and renewal in good works.

Peter shows us how to be faithful Christians in our times: 1st Century Discipleship in the 21st Century. And Jesus calls all of us “Follow Me”, even in times that make it hard to be Christian.

In the aftermath of Israel’s idolatry with the golden calf God refused to go with them any further. When Moses stepped in to intercede God relented, promising his presence and revealing his glory.

Like all wise fathers, God taught his children right and wrong. The Ten Commandments are God's grace gift: they teach us how to love God back, how to represent God to the nations, and teach us our need for Christ.

What are the Ten Commandments for? Just to obey a demanding God? No, they show us how to live in grace - the grace God gave the Israelites by bringing them to Himself out of Egypt on eagles' wings. The Law is a mirror that shows us our hearts and a path for us to walk on.

How can believers find "blessed assurance" when every circumstance mocks them with trials and troubles? St. Paul's climactic message in "the Great Eighth" (Romans 8) not only affirms the assurance of faith but also reveals the Gospel paradoxical power that transforms our troubles and sanctifies our sorrows. This is truly a "theology of suffering" that everyone needs to embrace.

The Christian must learn to wait. God's great work in us has only just begun. We are "washed" in Christ's blood, yet "waiting" for the full blessing of new life that will be ours in New Earth.

Gaining certainty about the Resurrection in the face of doubt.

[Media of this message is coming soon.] Cleopas and Mary’s encounter with the risen Christ on the road to Emmaus can be our experience too.

[Media of this message is coming soon.] We can be as certain of the Resurrection and heaven as the early Christians were.

[Media of this message is coming soon.] A fictionalized account of the centurion, Petronius, who guarded Jesus’s tomb, and his meeting with Matthew years later. (Same message given April 4, 2010.)

What options do we have for responding to the Resurrrection? In the Resurrection passages we are told to not fear, believe, and rejoice.

To the man who doesn’t take God seriously, eventually God becomes silent. God will not be trifled with.

Like Barabbas, we are all guilty of great sin. We do not deserve pardon, we deserve death. But Jesus died for us and paid the price of our sin.

We can turn adversity to advantage, by making it an occasion for exercise of faith and resulting blessing for ourselves and our family.

Jesus never stops loving you, but unless you love him *back*, he will let *you* go.

Life is hard. The Bible knows it. The Bible speaks to it. We have great hope in the redemption of our bodies: our resurrection.

Romans 8 gives great hope for creation, which groans while it waits for Christ and his people to be revealed.

Romans 8 says we are children of God and fellow heirs with Christ. What does that mean? And what does it mean for us right now?

Because of Jesus’ death for us on the Cross, we can be adopted by our heavenly Father, made children of God and become inheritors of the immeasurable riches of His Kingdom.

The example of Naaman the Syrian, healed of his leprosy in the Jordan when he was expecting a more spectacular means of encountering God, leads us to expect to meet God in simple things. This expectation is confirmed by the manger and cross of Jesus Christ.

Don’t believe something about yourself that Jesus refuses to say. Many Christians struggle unnecessarily with feelings of self-condemnation for their ongoing failure to live up to God’s standards. Romans 8 gives us great hope that we can move past self-condemnation into an assurance of our healing for this love and help.

As image bearers of a just God, we are to do justice. Isaiah 58 is a bracing word to God’s people, but with clear instructions and promises of blessing when we love like God does, and do justice.

Jesus is a person, not an idea. He *is* the good news.

Jesus assures the Philadelphians in Rev 3:7-13 of the hope of eternity with God so they will faithfully endure persecution and suffering. An eternal perspective and a God-ward focus is needed in all of our lives to keep us rightly oriented, keeping priorities and perspective when things are going well, and to give us hope and assurance when we are dealing with trials and hardships.

Jesus calls Sardis a dead church. How do know when church is dead, and what does Jesus say to do about it?

The Christ is shown in Revelation as incomparable, cosmic, conquering, and coming.

In the face of utter calamity, such as the calamity the world felt when the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, how can we respond? When the foundations are destroyed, when not only physical things are disintegrating, but when a nation's moral, ethical and religious moorings are dissolving, what can the follower of Jesus Christ do? The Psalmist in Psalm 11 teaches us how the righteous can respond. The righteous woman or man is to 1) remain righteous; 2) trust in the Lord; and 3) preach the Gospel.

As we remember the day when the towers fell, the Pentagon burned, and a plane falling from the Pennsylvania sky cut an untimely grave, the Scripture directs us to a vision of a White Horse and its Rider.

How can all Christians live faithfully to God in an oversexed and permissive culture, particularly if they are single?

Acts 2.42-47 is one of the most compelling portraits of the church as it’s ever been experienced. It helps us know what to expect when the Spirit comes to a community of believers.

Just like at the first Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit comes he convicts and the response is to repent.

The Holy Spirit will help us tell the story of Jesus Christ.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Acts 1:1-11. The printed sermon text differs significantly from the recording, which focuses on the objective basis for our faith. The printed sermon walks through Acts 1:1-11 and describes six inherent warnings.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Mark 16:12-13 and Luke 24:13-35.

A reflection on Jesus’ first word from the cross.

Jesus died to be Living Water for us. A reflection on Jesus’ fifth word from the cross.

The God who judges us is the God who weeps over us - we see this in Jesus on Palm Sunday.

Along our Lenten way, looking ahead to the great drama of our redemption which we will shortly be celebrating at Holy Week and the Easter feast, we pause to sing a song of ascents which paradoxically begins “out of the depths.” How can that be? By waiting for the Lord. Why? Because he is God and we are not. Yes, but how? First, we wait actively, as St. Paul directs us in our capacity to set our minds on the Spirit and not on the flesh. Secondly, in our incapacity, we wait passively, like Lazarus. His contribution? It was twofold: he was dead and he stunk.

Jesus loves us the way he’s loved by the Father. Knowing this is harder than it seems, but there are ways we can “abide in his love.”

What is the essential meaning of John 15.1-11? Jesus tells us how the spiritual life works, and says simply “Abide in Me” using an illustration of the vine and branches.

In following Christ, he surely will sometimes take us where we don't want to go.

"The Kingdom of God" is The Age of the Spirit. In this age God pours out His Spirit on the elect and comes to dwell in their hearts in the Person of the Holy Spirit. No one is saved apart from the regeneration of the Holy Spirit. Similarly, the process of sanctification is all about learning to walk in the Spirit, submitting more and more of your life to the Spirit. The key question is not “how much of the Holy Spirit do you have?,” but “how much of you does the Holy Spirit have?” One implication of being filled with the Spirit is worship!

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church. God gives us his Spirit to help us do what he calls us to do.

The Rev. Robert Watkin speaks to The Falls Church from Matthew 9:35-38, focusing on the outward call of God's people to proclaim and demonstrate the good news of Christ.

We live in an age where God is expanding His kingdom one person at a time. Jesus chooses to use us to expand His kingdom by our actions and with our words. Three things to do to effectively tell others about the gospel of heaven: (1) Make time in your life to hang around with people that don’t know Jesus. (2) Think through your testimony and what your life was like before you met Christ, how you met Christ and what’s your life like since you met Christ. (3) Learn a simple illustration to explain the good news of the gospel of the kingdom of heaven.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from John 15:12-17. Being made in the Image of God provides deep dignity to our work, but we must be sure to love first and love well.

The Rev. Jim Byrne speaks to The Falls Church from John 1:1-18. Jesus is the Word of God Incarnate. The same Word of the Lord who spoke creation into existence can speak transformation into your life!

The Rev. Robert Watkin speaks to The Falls Church from John 1:1-18. Jesus, as the Word made flesh, is the most supreme revelation of God, who became vulnerable for us and ever tabernacles among us as our ever-present God.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Luke 2:1-14. He shares that all the greatness and glory of God was concentrated in the little child Jesus.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from John 1:1-14. A reflection on Jesus, The Word Made Flesh, and the sweetness of the Incarnation.

The Rev. Nicholas Lubelfeld speaks to The Falls Church from John 1:1-14. “The Christmas Gospel goes behind the event itself and compels us to consider not so much the history as the mystery of the nativity story.” (Frank Colquhoun) How? In old-fashioned language: By the mystery of the incarnation the Son of God became the Son of Man so that by the miracle of regeneration the sons of men might become the sons of God.

The Rev. John Kurcina speaks to The Falls Church from John 14:12-31. The sermon looks at the plight of orphans (& widows) in the ancient world in order to more fully understand the gospel promises for a family and home that Jesus gives to his disciples in John 14.

The Rev. Wright Wall speaks to The Falls Church from John 14:8-11. When Jesus says “I am in the Father and the Father is in me,” he is saying, "I am God". And if that is true, then we have a God that wants to be found -- a God that comes looking for us. Moreover, we have a God that is restoring His creation.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from John 14:1-7. He shares that Jesus is the lens through which we see God the Father, and the pathway to the Father.

The Rev. John Kurcina speaks to The Falls Church from 1 Peter 1:1-9. The foundation for holy living and for trusting God in hard times is the living hope of our imperishable inheritance through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus, “kept in heaven for you…the certainty of Heaven assures us of joy.”

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 13:18-25, in the conclusion to the church's eight-month study of the book of Hebrews. This message was given at the Saturday 5 p.m. service, the Sunday 9 a.m. service, and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. John Kurcina speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 13:7-19. This message was given at the Sunday 11 a.m. Rite II Holy Communion service held in the Historic Church.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 12:1-2. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Rick Wright speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 11:29-30. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from Deuteronomy 34:1-8. This message was given at the 9 a.m. and large 11:00 a.m. informal service.

The Rev. Kathleen Christopher speaks to The Falls Church from Genesis 18:9-15 and Hebrews 11:11. This message was given at the 9 a.m. and large 11:00 a.m. informal service.

The Rev. Dean Miller speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 11:17-22. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Dean Miller speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 11:8-16. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 11:1-7. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 10:19-30. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 10:1-18. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 9:27-28. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Wright Wall speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 9:15-28. This message was given at the Saturday 5 p.m. service.

The Rev. Bill Mugford speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 9:1-10. This message was given at the 9 a.m. and large 11:00 a.m. informal service.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 8:1-13. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Wright Wall speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 8:1-13. This message was given at the Saturday 5 p.m. service.

The Right Rev. FitzSimons Allison speaks to The Falls Church from 2 Corinthians 3:2-6. This message was given at the 9 a.m. and large 11:00 a.m. informal service.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 7:1-28. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. John Kurcina speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 6:13-20. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Dean Miller speaks to The Falls Church from Jeremiah 30:18-22 and 31:31-40. This message was given at the Sunday 5:30 p.m. service.

The Rev. Wright Wall speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 5:11-14. This message was given at the Saturday 5 p.m. service.

The Rev. Dr. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church in a message concluding the church's "Art Music Justice" weekend. Jena Nardella and Shep Owen also speak. Texts include Revelation 21:1-4 and 1 Corinthians 15. This message was given at the 9 a.m. and large 11:00 a.m. informal service.

The Rev. Dr. John W. Yates II speaks to The Falls Church on Easter Day. His message tells the story of Jesus' Resurrection from the perspective of one of the Roman soldiers.

The Rev. Wright Wall speaks to The Falls Church at the Great Vigil of Easter.

The Rev. Wright Wall speaks to The Falls Church from Isaiah 53:4-9, at the Good Friday service of Tenebrae.

The Rev. Bobb Fickley speaks to The Falls Church from Luke 23:32-38.

The Rev. Kathleen Christopher speaks to The Falls Church from Luke 23:39-43.

The Rev. James Swynford speaks to The Falls Church from John 19:19-27.

The Rev. Dr. Rick Wright speaks to The Falls Church from Mark 15:33-39.

The Rev. Bob Koth speaks to The Falls Church from John 19:28-29.

The Rev. Robert Watkin speaks to The Falls Church from John 19:30-37.

The Rev. Nicholas Lubelfeld speaks to The Falls Church from Luke 23:44-49.

The Rev. John Kurcina speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 4:14-5:10. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Right Rev. David Bena, Suffragan Bishop, speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 4:1-13. This message was given at the large 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. Confirmation services.

The Rev. Kristen Yates, Deacon, speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 4:1-13. This message was given at the Saturday 5 p.m. service.

The Rev. John Yates speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 3:7-19. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.

The Rev. Robert Watkin speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 3:1-6. This message was given at the 9 a.m. and large 11:00 a.m. informal service.

The Rev. Bill Haley speaks to The Falls Church from Hebrews 2:5-18. This message was given at the 9 a.m. service and both 11:00 a.m. services.