After more than four and a half years studying the Gospel of Luke together, we come to Luke's final paragraph and the culmination of everything Luke set out to accomplish. From the beginning, Luke wrote so that his readers might know "the certainty" of the things they had been taught concerning Jesus Christ. In this closing message, we see the result of that certainty on full display.

As Christ ascends from the Mount of Olives, returning to the glory that was His before the foundation of the world, the disciples are not filled with fear or confusion. They are filled with worship, joy, obedience, and praise. Having seen the risen Christ through the lens of the Scriptures, they have become people who cannot go back to living the way they once lived.

This message explores the significance of Christ's ascension as the capstone of His earthly ministry. The incarnation revealed Him as the God-Man. The crucifixion accomplished redemption. The resurrection declared His victory over sin and death. But the ascension enthrones Him as the risen and reigning Savior who sits at the Father's right hand, having completed the work of salvation.

More than a conclusion to Luke's Gospel, this passage reminds us that vibrant Christianity is not produced by programs, methods, traditions, or man-centered ideas. It is produced when Christ is clearly revealed in the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit opens our understanding to see Him for who He truly is. The same certainty that transformed the disciples is the certainty that still transforms believers today.

Join us as we conclude our verse-by-verse journey through Luke's Gospel and consider what happens when God's people see Christ as He is revealed in His Word—a Savior worthy of worship, obedience, joy, and lifelong devotion.

In this week's Wednesday Bible Study, we continue through 1 Corinthians 10 as Paul brings his teaching on Christian liberty, gospel stewardship, and living in a culture full of idols to a practical conclusion.

The Corinthians believed they could freely participate in activities connected to idols because they knew the idols themselves were nothing. Paul confronts that thinking by reminding them that participation in worship always involves fellowship with the object being worshiped. While many things may be lawful, not everything is profitable or edifying.

The heart of the passage is not simply asking, "Can I do this?" but asking, "Does this build others up? Does this help bring people together for the Lord? Does this strengthen someone in their walk with Christ?" Paul teaches that Christian liberty must be governed by love, not merely by knowledge.

Using the practical example of meat offered to idols, Paul shows how believers can navigate the gray areas of life with wisdom and gratitude. Christians are free in Christ, but they are also called to consider how their choices affect others. Rather than living for their own benefit, believers should seek what best serves others, removes stumbling blocks, and opens doors for the gospel to have a greater impact.

Ultimately, Paul challenges believers to make decisions not simply based on their rights, but based on what best glorifies God and helps others move closer to Christ. Every choice becomes an opportunity to faithfully steward the gospel and reflect the Lord to the world around us.

Listen as we continue our verse-by-verse study through 1 Corinthians and consider what it looks like to use our liberty in a way that builds others up, advances the gospel, and brings glory to God.

After Missions Weekend, we returned to Philippians 4 and considered a sobering question: If the Lord returned today, what fruit would be found on our account?

As Paul thanks the believers at Philippi for supporting his ministry, he reminds them that his greatest desire was not the gift itself, but "fruit that may abound to your account." Their generosity allowed them to participate in the work of the gospel and invest in something that would outlast this life.

Throughout Philippians, Paul repeatedly calls believers to unity, humility, contentment, and gospel-minded living. The goal is not our preferences, our recognition, or our comfort. The goal is Christ and the furtherance of His gospel.

Paul had learned to be content whether he had much or little, whether he was free or under arrest. What mattered was faithfully serving Christ wherever God had planted him. Even while under house arrest, Paul continued sharing the gospel, and believers were added from Caesar's household.

The challenge for every believer is the same. The Lord has placed us where we are for a purpose. Whether through serving in the local church, encouraging other believers, supporting missionaries, praying faithfully, or sharing the gospel ourselves, we have opportunities every day to invest in eternity.

One day we will stand before Christ. The question is not what we accumulated for ourselves, but what was done for Him. May we be united together, humble enough to serve, and faithful in the work God has given us while there is still time.

Without a doubt, the most vital part of any structure is the foundation. Jesus illustrated this in the Sermon on the Mount. He told a parable about one man who built his house upon the sand. That house was destroyed because it had a faulty foundation. Another man built his house upon a rock. The house built upon the rock endured the raging storms and howling winds because it had a firm foundation. Jesus stressed the importance of having a good foundation. Matt. 7:24-27

Palm 11 is a Psalm of David. This Psalm was written when David was married to Saul’s daughter Michal; and when Saul’s son, Jonathan, was David’s steadfast friend. It was also that time when the nation was cheering louder for David than it did for Saul. All these things increased Saul’s suspicions and spite. More than once he threw a javelin at David in a fit of demonic hate.

It was during this dangerous, nerve-racking period in his life that David wrote Psalm 11. Notice what David asks in verse 3: “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” David’s question amounted almost to a cry of despair. He could see the throne, the establishment, the foundation, of everything good being undermined by unscrupulous and vicious men. The word “foundations” comes from a Hebrew word meaning “the settled order of things.” David likened society to a building. The foundation of society is law and order, justice and truth. If these are undermined in a society then what can the righteous do?

When David wrote this Psalm he was living in the court of King Saul: and he was troubled by what was taking place in Israel politically. God told Samuel to tell the nation of Israel what to expect from King Saul. 1 Samuel 8:7-20. The description provided by Samuel gives the understanding that Saul is going to be a selfish corrupt king. Living in the palace, he had an insider’s look at the corruption that was taking place within the leadership of his nation of Israel. Law and order, truth, justice, morality, decency, and integrity were all being thrown out the window as the nation slipped further away from God.

David will conclude that when the foundations of all that is good are being destroyed, the righteous can always trust in God. The LORD loves righteousness and hates iniquity because He is righteous. He is good and merciful. He always does what is best. The songwriter reminds us that when you can’t trace His hand, you can trust His heart.  

EBCares Weekend is a three-part teaching series designed to clearly present the philosophy, motivation, and power behind EBCares. Across these sessions, you’ll see a unified progression—from understanding Christ’s call to make disciples, to discovering how God’s grace motivates joyful participation, to embracing our role as witnesses of the gospel empowered by the Holy Spirit. Together, these messages form a complete picture of what it means to engage in Christ’s mission: grounded in Scripture, fueled by grace, and carried out with a deep desire to see others come to know and experience the peace found in Him.

The Apostle Paul’s warning in 1 Corinthians 10 confronts us with a sobering truth: it is possible to be surrounded by spiritual privilege and still fall into spiritual failure. Israel had God’s provision, His presence, and His promises—yet they repeatedly turned their hearts toward other things. In the same way, believers today can drift into idolatry not by openly rejecting God, but by slowly giving their devotion, attention, and trust to something else. Idolatry is not just bowing to carved images; it is anything that takes the place in our hearts that belongs to God alone. And like the Corinthians, we often excuse it as harmless involvement, influenced by culture, comfort, and convenience.

That is why Paul’s command is urgent and direct: flee idolatry. Not manage it, not justify it—run from it. Because participation is never neutral; what we join ourselves to, we fellowship with. We cannot sit at the Lord’s Table and at the same time share in what opposes Him. Christ has redeemed us and claimed us, and He will not share our worship with another. So the call is not merely to avoid sin, but to guard a relationship—to remain faithful to the One we already belong to. Today, we are reminded to examine our hearts, reject every rival, and pursue wholehearted devotion to Christ alone.

In the close of Paul's letter to the believers in Philippi, he encourages them to stand fast in the Lord knowing that their hope isn't in this life, but is in the one to come. Throughout chapter 4 he directs the dearly beloved toward the Lord expressing how to rejoice in the Lord and know that He is their strength.

In today's sermon we are reminded that as we stand fast in the Lord in our Christian lives, He is to be the center of our focus, and that He will give us a peace beyond our understanding.

Paul turns Israel’s history into a present warning and a present comfort for the church. Their failures in the wilderness were not recorded as distant stories, but as God-given instruction for us—lessons from a people whose faith was tried and often found wanting. Yet beneath both their failures and God’s dealings with them runs a steady, unchanging truth: the faithfulness of God.

In 1 Corinthians 10:11–13, Paul draws our attention to that governing principle. In every test, every temptation, every pressure upon our faith, God proves Himself reliable. He is not absent in the trial, nor uncertain in His purpose. He designs it, limits it, and works through it—shaping His people and guarding them along the way.

So, as we come to this text, we are reminded that the trying of our faith is never wasted. The same God who dealt with Israel now deals with us in faithfulness. He can be fully relied upon in every trial of your faith—He has a purpose, is working in you to accomplish it, and He will not fail you.

One of the Old Testament titles for the Messiah is “Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6), pointing to the One who brings true reconciliation and wholeness.

In today’s text, Jesus opens His disciples’ minds to understand the Scriptures, helping them see that His death and resurrection were not a defeat, but the very means by which He inaugurated His saving reign.

In today’s sermon, we see how the Prince of Peace takes His throne—through His death and resurrection—and from that throne exercises His authority, issuing His commands and pouring out His gifts upon His people.

Today brings us Paul's final warning about disqualifying ourselves from Gospel stewardship and he puts his finger on something deeper than words: “Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer."

Israel’s story in Numbers 11–17 shows us that complaining is never just about circumstances—it is the outward expression of a rebellious heart. The people voiced discontent about food, leadership, and the hardships of the journey, but beneath it all was something more serious: they wanted the promise of the covenant—land and blessing—without the path of the covenant—obedience, trust, and submission to the Lord. Their grumbling revealed a heart that resisted God even while expecting His provision.

And Paul says the Corinthians were walking that same dangerous path. They desired the privileges of the New Covenant, yet resisted its demands—self-denial, love for others, and submission to Christ.

So, the warning comes home to us: deal with the rebellion of the heart before it ever comes out of the mouth. Because God did not overlook Israel’s grumbling then, and He does not overlook it now. In His love, He disciplines His people—not to cast us off, but to correct us—so that we would not presume upon the blessings of salvation while neglecting the obedience through which He sanctifies us.

The strength with which the peace of Christ rules our hearts is directly connected to how clearly, we understand who He is and what He has done—as revealed in the Scriptures. When our view of Christ is small or unclear, our peace is weak; but when we see Him rightly, our hearts are steadied and strengthened.

In Luke 24, we find the disciples in a different place than before. They are no longer startled and confused—they are ready. Ready for the Lord Himself to open their minds and teach them. And what He gives them is not merely comfort, but clarity.

Jesus turns them to the Scriptures and shows them that everything—His suffering, His death, and His resurrection—was not accidental, but necessary. It was written. It was planned. It was fulfilled.

And this is where true peace is found: not just in seeing the risen Christ, but in understanding Him through the Word.

As we continue to follow Paul’s warning to the Corinthian church, we come to another danger that leads to disqualification—tempting the Lord by presuming upon His grace.

Paul points them back again to Israel. Their hearts grew discouraged in the wilderness. Dissatisfied with God’s provision, they began to test Him—provoking Him in hopes that He would change their circumstances to suit their desires (cf. Numbers 21).

What began as discouragement turned into distrust… and distrust into defiance.

And Paul’s warning is clear:
Do not think you can presume upon the Lord—pushing His patience, testing His mercy—and escape the consequences. The God who saves is also the God who disciplines.

Grace is not permission to provoke Him.
And those who tempt the Lord place themselves in danger of disqualification.

The believer’s life is filled with many blessings from Christ, but few are as precious as His peace. Biblically, peace speaks of a binding together of what was once separated. Through faith in Jesus Christ, the believer now has peace with God—union replacing former hostility. Yet beyond this positional peace, there is also the daily experience of peace as we walk in the conscious presence of Christ. Even so, this peace will one day reach its fullness when Christ returns and completes our salvation—granting glorified bodies and removing forever the law of sin from our presence.

Our text today brings us to the night of the resurrection, where Christ appears bodily among His gathered disciples. His sudden presence initially produces fear and alarm, but it quickly gives way to the very thing His people need most—peace. This passage invites us to consider the believer’s experience of peace in the presence of the risen Christ.

As we continue our study, Paul brings us to another sobering warning from Israel’s history. In 1 Corinthians 10:8, he points back to a moment when a redeemed and protected people were brought low—not by an enemy’s attack, but by their own divided hearts. In Numbers 25, Israel was drawn into immorality and the worship of Baal, trading devotion to the living God for the pleasures of the world around them. The lesson is unmistakable: no amount of divine protection can keep us standing if our hearts are set on what God has forbidden. What happened at Baal-Peor is not just ancient history—it is a living warning for the church today.

Just because there is potential, it doesn’t mean there is fulfillment! If you want to know God’s rest, you have to know God’s way.

The writer of Psalm 95 blends the joy of worship with the necessity of obedience, urging that true worship is not just singing, but listening and following God. We’re not sure who wrote this Psalm, but it emphasizes the importance of worshiping God as The God, The King, The Creator, The One worthy of our worship, and we are His people, and He is our shepherd. The psalmist then then shifts to the children of Isreal who because of the hardness of their hearts, they could not enter into His rest.

Here we have one of the great warnings, we have here a negative passage with a positive truth. God is saying here, don’t do this!

There are many harsh things in life that we must deal with, but you choose how you respond in your heart.

In this psalm, he goes back to the father’s generation, it takes you all the way back their ancestors, back to the book of numbers 13-14. This Psalm cries loudly, “Don’t get stuck in the wilderness!”

God gives us here a conditional promise, that if you and I don’t continue to believe and obey God, and if we stop short of what God has for us, were going to miss what God has prepared for us. The saddest part about sin, is not what you get, but what you miss.

Great privilege is no guarantee of faithfulness to gospel stewardship. Faithfulness comes only through the hard work of keeping our greatest enemy in check—ourselves.

In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul reminds us that Israel enjoyed extraordinary privileges from the Lord, yet they failed to carry out the work He entrusted to them. Their downfall was not a lack of blessing, but misplaced desire. They set their hearts on the things of this life rather than exercising self-control and restraint.

Paul says these events were recorded as examples for us—warnings we must take seriously so that we do not repeat the same mistakes in our own stewardship. At the core of Israel’s failure was idolatry. They diminished God, making Him small enough to worship on their own terms.

Today’s passage calls us to examine our hearts and guard ourselves from idols. Join us as we learn how to discern them, resist them, and remain faithful stewards of the grace we have been given.

The resurrection of Christ accomplished many wondrous things, but one of the most practically significant for His followers was the transformation of their trust in Him. No longer did they see Jesus merely as a political or national redeemer; they came to trust Him as the Savior of the world. This renewed trust filled their hearts with a burning joy, driving out fear, anxiety, and doubt. It also created the fertile ground in which Christ could cause them to experience His peace.

Biblical peace is first a condition—being made one with the Lord—and second an experience that keeps believers resting as they lean on Jesus through difficult days. Today’s text reveals how Christ’s peace came to His people and what that peace empowered them to do.

One of the deepest motivations in the life of the Apostle Paul was his desire not to be disqualified from usefulness to Christ. He understood that unchecked indulgence could undermine his calling, so he disciplined his natural life with intentional severity. Paul did not live as a slave to desire, but as a servant to his divine calling—to faithfully steward the Gospel of Christ.

History, however, is filled with sobering examples of people who were given extraordinary privilege by God, yet ultimately failed to remain useful in His purposes.

As we enter chapter 10, Paul issues a serious warning to the Corinthians by pointing to the people of Israel. Despite being the most privileged nation in history—witnessing God’s power, provision, and presence firsthand—their downfall came from a simple but devastating failure: they loved this world more than the God who called them.

Join us as we study the danger of disqualification and consider what it means to remain faithful, disciplined, and useful in the service of Christ.

The Lord is always at work in His people, steadily perfecting their trust in Himself. Sometimes that work is quiet. Sometimes it is uncomfortable. But it is always purposeful. That truth is on full display as the risen Christ walks with two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus.

These followers of Jesus are troubled, confused, and disappointed. Their hopes seem crushed, even though the resurrection has already taken place. Yet in their sorrow, the Lord draws near. Through patient conversation and the opening of the Scriptures, Christ replaces the turmoil in their hearts with a burning, joyful trust—the kind of trust that rests fully in the sufficiency of who He is.

Today we continue part two of our sermon, Jesus Drew Near, as we look closely at this remarkable journey. Together, we will see the critical elements of true discipleship and what it means to have hearts that burn—hearts blessed by a deep, settled confidence that Jesus is enough.

In the closing section of chapter 9, Paul identifies the greatest threat to his work in the gospel—not opposition, not persecution, but himself. Throughout this chapter, he has spoken of his stewardship of the gospel, the sacred task given to him by the Lord to proclaim Christ and bring others into the life‑changing power of the gospel.

Now, Paul turns from explanation to exhortation. He calls the Corinthians to follow his example—to willingly limit their liberties for the sake of others—so that they too might faithfully carry out their stewardship of the gospel. The issue is not what Paul can do, but what he is willing to deny himself so that the gospel will advance.

The resurrection of Christ fundamentally transformed how His followers understood His person and His work. Prior to that morning, their trust in Him was genuine but fragile — immature at best. Through His arrest, crucifixion, burial, and ultimately His resurrection, that faith would be tested, purified, and finally brought to full harvest.

Today’s passage brings us to one of the most important scenes in Luke’s Gospel. We encounter the first recorded appearance of the risen Christ to two disciples whose hearts are heavy with confusion, disappointment, and grief. Yet what begins as sorrow will soon become joy, and what is clouded doubt will be replaced with burning trust.

As Jesus walks with them, He opens the Scriptures and reveals Himself as their fulfillment. In doing so, He transforms troubled hearts into hearts ablaze with faith. Join us as we see how Christ uses His Word to bring clarity, hope, and unshakable trust to His followers—and how He continues to do the same for us today.

In this lesson, we take a break from our study of 1 Corinthians to hear from a man who has devoted his life to the work of the Gospel. Pastor Robert serves the Lord in Uganda, where he and his wife are being used by God to bring the Gospel to children whom society has discarded. Their ministry, King’s Kid, has led to the salvation of many children, the establishment of a children’s home, the founding of schools, and the planting of churches. As you listen to his presentation, you will be amazed by the power of the Gospel and encouraged by what the Lord is doing through their ministry.

Today’s text brings us to Psalm 40 where the Psalmist gives the description that he is waiting patiently for the Lord. This is no simple task, but the Psalmist further describes that while he is waiting, God is at work in his life which brings comfort to suffering believers. If we trace through the Scriptures we find in Acts 16 that God is again working while Paul and Silas are suffering, but that God has put a song in their heart while they wait patiently on Him. Suffering servants are to be singing servants, and it is only God who can put a new song in our mouth.

In our next study, we encounter the Apostle Paul as he lays bare the driving motivation of his ministry. Scripture makes it unmistakably clear that Paul was powerfully effective everywhere he preached and among every audience he encountered. This raises a vital question for us: why? What compelled this man to endure hardship, opposition, and personal sacrifice in order to advance the gospel?

The answer is beautifully simple and profoundly challenging—Christ was precious to Paul. Doing whatever would advance the gospel came to dominate his life because Jesus Christ held supreme value in his heart. Paul’s effectiveness did not flow from strategy alone, but from devotion. His life was shaped by a deep reverence for Christ that fueled a willingness to go wherever he was sent and to serve whomever he encountered.

When Christ is greatly treasured, a missionary heart is the natural byproduct. In this passage, Paul shows us how, for the sake of the gospel, he willingly made himself a servant to all. He adapted his freedoms, preferences, and personal rights so that nothing would hinder the opportunity to win others to Christ. Paul enslaved himself to men—not out of obligation, but out of love—so that the gospel might reach them.

This study causes us to examine our own motivations. If Christ is truly precious to us, our lives, like Paul’s, will be increasingly shaped by a heart that longs to see others won to Him.

The final chapter of Luke opens with the greatest miracle of our Lord—the Resurrection. When studied in context, it is seen as the fulfillment of what Jesus had predicted regarding the sifting His followers would endure in order to make them useful. Their trust in Christ was sifted through His arrest and crucifixion; yet that same trust was brought to harvest through the Resurrection.

At the heart of this harvest was a renewed realization of Christ’s trustworthiness. What He foretold concerning His resurrection proved dependable, not merely because it happened, but because of who He is. And yet, despite this, we find His followers confused and slow to believe the news that He is alive. This highlights an essential truth: mature trust in Christ does not depend on favorable circumstances, but on confidence in the person of Christ Himself.

Let's all remember what He said, and trust Him in the process...

Today's text gives us a glimpse into what made the Apostle Paul tick...

Join us as we see the why of Paul's ministry for Christ.

The Apostle Paul commonly expressed the union a believer enjoys with Christ by the phrase, "In Christ". It identifies both our covenantal position as well as the blessings that are our because we are "in Christ".

Today we examine where Christ was and what He was doing while His body lay in the tomb before His resurrection. As we understand these two concepts, we are reminded that uncertain times are no trouble for those that are "in Christ".

As we enter chapter 9, Paul gently turns our attention from principle to practice. In the previous chapter, he reminded the Corinthians that knowledge alone—even knowledge of what is right and wrong—is never enough to guide our choices as followers of Christ. Knowledge must be shaped and governed by love. Without love, even our freedoms can become stumbling blocks that harm the very brothers and sisters we are called to build up. Sadly, the Corinthians often acted without considering how their choices affected others, and the spiritual fractures in their church revealed the results of that mindset.

In today’s passage, Paul offers himself as a living example of the principle he taught. When he was with the Corinthians, he chose not to receive financial support from them, though he had every right to do so. Instead, he worked with his own hands as a tentmaker, providing for his needs while faithfully preaching the gospel. Paul explains that this decision was intentional. He willingly endured hardship, inconvenience, and sacrifice so that nothing—absolutely nothing—would hinder the faith of new believers or cast suspicion on his motives.

For Paul, the cost was real, but so was the calling. He gladly laid down a right he possessed so that others might more clearly see the grace of Christ. His example invites us to consider where love might call us to limit our freedoms, to surrender our preferences, or to bear inconvenience for the good of others and the glory of the gospel. In Paul’s eyes, no sacrifice was too great if it paved the way for a clearer view of Jesus.

Our text today leads us to a part of the Gospel we often overlook: the burial of Christ. This moment between the cross and the resurrection is vital, grounding our faith in real events and guarding the Gospel from slipping into myth.

Luke highlights the quiet devotion of unlikely followers who cared for Jesus’ body. Their tender obedience shows us what it means to follow Christ even when hope seems hidden—trusting that God is at work in the silence, and that faithfulness in the “in‑between” places still honors Him.

Have you ever encountered a fellow believer doing something that seemed questionable and wondered whether it was right? Maybe you even searched the Scriptures and concluded that it might be permissible, yet it still felt uncertain. Christians face these kinds of dilemmas often, and the struggle is not new. The Corinthians dealt with the same issue—specifically, whether it was acceptable to eat meat that had been offered to idols.

In our lesson today, we examine Paul’s instructions for navigating the gray areas of the Christian life. He teaches that our understanding and practice of what is right and wrong must be governed by our love for one another. Knowledge without love can lead us into sin against Christ, but knowledge expressed through love builds up both ourselves and those around us.