Divine Savior Church-santa Rita Ranch Sermons

Weddings can be wonderful celebrations...and also sources of stress! What couple wouldn't want everything to go perfectly?! But...problems happen. At a wedding and reception, all eyes are normally on the bride and groom and yet in Cana, we gladly look to Christ as he "revealed his glory" in an unusual, but comforting way. Jesus reveals himself as a Savior who shows care for his people even in unexpected circumstances. Support the show

Trusting Jesus is easy when things are going well in our lives. However, it is a lot more challenging when hardships come. How do we remove doubts in these circumstances? Jesus teaches us that today in Matthew 11:2-6.Support the show

Christmas is over and now staring us in the face are our troubles and problems. But the joy of Christmas doesn't end when the decorations are put away. The joy of Christmas continues as we realize God is present with us. Luke 2:25-35Support the show

We look at our lives and the world and it is easy to wonder if God really loves the world. But at Christmas we see that he absolutely loves the world including you! John 3:16-18Support the show

With all the benefits that this Child brings, we might think that everyone would welcome him. And at Christmas it might appear that everyone does welcome Jesus. But the reality is that even for us as believers, there is something about Jesus that makes us uncomfortable. Isaiah warns in advance that the Child born on Christmas is the God whom no one wants. Support the show

“And they all lived happily ever after.” Many families do not experience this fairy tale ending. Especially at Christmas, many are burdened with a sense of disappointment that their family is torn apart. Others are dreading that Christmas party where we will all try to “make nice.” Hard to imagine that Isaiah saw a child who could make peace in your family! Support the show

Don’t you wish that you could be a child again? For a child, Christmas is coming and they can’t wait because they don’t have a care in the world. But for us adults, there are so many heavy responsibilities to carry – not just the Christmas preparations but the day to day pressures of life. How ironic that Isaiah saw that God would become a child to take all that weight off of our shoulders!Support the show

Sometimes our troubles are so big, that we can’t see around them. We think that we are facing them all alone. But Isaiah saw that Jesus is the God who is near. Whether we believe it or not, Jesus came near to us in his birth and he still comes near to us today. Support the show

Moms say things to their children and then don’t follow through.  Dad’s make promises that go unfulfilled.  It happens in every facet of life.  Except when it comes to our Savior.  Already in the Old Testament, God used the Prophet Jeremiah to foretell his arrival, even going so far as to say, “This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior.” (23:6)  That’s our Savior.  That’s the One worthy of our praise.  He’s never failed us.  He never will.Support the show

Death is ugly. It does not matter if someone dies after a long fight with illness or if they die peacefully in their sleep, those left behind mourn their passing and their absence is noticed. Death would be overwhelming were it not for the fact that, for the believer, Christ has completely transformed death. Death is not the end. For those who are part of Christ’s forever family, death is rather the beginning of a new and better life, one where the deceased has triumphed over sin and its consequences. Christians have a forever family. We look forward to being reunited with brothers and sisters in the faith who precede us in death soon. Support the show

Twenty-one billion dollars. That is how much Americans spend annually on home security. We want our homes to be a place where our family feels safe from everything that can hurt them. However, the reality is no amount of locks, alarms or cameras can keep you perfectly safe. Jesus, though, not only can.  He promises to do so.In his Church on earth, Jesus has given us a home that is perfectly safe. Christians can look forward to Christ’s triumphant return with great anticipation. Even as “the mountains fall into the heart of the sea” (Psalm 46:2), we have Christ’s promise that we will be perfectly safe.Support the show

We begin our Welcome Home series with one of the most comforting passages found anywhere in Scripture. To an individual- to a world- in turmoil, God says to us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) God is a loving Father. He does not pretend we have no brokenness or sin, but he paid for it all by the death and resurrection of Christ. Scripture says that through faith in Christ, we are forgiven. We have true rest in Christ’s love.God’s grace not only frees us from the fear of condemnation and punishment, it frees us to live a better, more peace-filled life. All because he equips us to do so.  All to his glory.Support the show

We are all too familiar with evil. We watch the news and see all the different evils that take place every day. But there's a greater evil that threatens us, but compared to all the other evils, it doesn't seem so bad. That's exactly why Jesus ends his prayer asking God to deliver us from evil. Support the show

We haven’t even earned the privilege of talking with God. Our sins have separated us from Him. But He forgave us through Jesus. So this request is as important to us as breathing. We humbly ask God to forgive us for all the ways we failed Him. But before we ask Him to forgive us, we have to be willing to forgive others. This prayer reminds us of the importance of extending grace before asking for grace. Support the show

Do you ever wonder why God answers some of your prayers with "yes" and others "no"? Do you ever wonder why you get stressed out and worried? In the 4th petition of the Lord's Prayer, we learn how to pray in a way that leads to contentment, but also in a way that relieves stress, worry, and anxiety. Support the show

We all want peace, security, and contentment. Often times, events in our lives and circumstances dictate whether we have them or not. But how do we pray in such a way that no matter if God answers "yes" or "no" we can have peace, security, and contentment? Jesus answers that for us in two petitions (requests) in the Lord's Prayer. If we can pray these from the bottom of our heart and mean it, we'll have exactly what we are looking for. Support the show

God’s name is everything He reveals to us about Himself in his Word. It is holy. Sacred. We can’t make it holy. It already is. But we can keep it holy by living in such a way that honors and thanks Him. We can keep his name holy, or sacred, when we share it with others, and tell them how awesome He is!   We begin this prayer with worship… letting God know He means everything to us.Support the show

Not everyone knows how to pray. As followers of Jesus, we want to know how to talk to our loving God. Jesus gives us a template that teaches us how to pray. His template, the Lord’s Prayer, reminds us that  because Jesus gave us access to his Father, we are talking to our loving heavenly Father when we talk to God. We are children of God who can approach Him with joy and confidence!Support the show

As Christians, we have many freedoms. There are plenty of areas in life that God hasn't told us what to do or what not to do. It's a matter of Christian freedom. But is exercising my freedom always the right thing to do? Paul tells us how church members are to live with other church members when they don't agree on matters of Christian freedoms. Support the show

Living in this 21st American political climate can be tough. The political arena and the government cause all kinds of emotions. How are God's people to behave? Maybe more important, why are they to behave that way? The Roman Christians had a similar situation and Paul answers both of these questions in Romans 13. Support the show