Rev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

Who are you? 

Once we move beyond the polite answers such as our names, occupations, accomplishments, or even our collegiate football allegiances, the question becomes much more personal. It's a question many of us struggle to answer. Yet at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus offers a remarkable response. 

Speaking to an ordinary, ragtag crowd gathered on a hillside, he tells them, "You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). What was true for them is still true for us today.

Using the images of a city on a hill and a lamp on a stand, Jesus teaches that God's people are meant to reflect His light into the world. Just as the lights of a city shine far beyond its borders, what God is doing in our lives reaches far beyond us. The way we live becomes a witness to others, revealing God's character and love. 

This passage challenges us to stay focused on what God has placed before us rather than becoming distracted by the many things competing for our attention. As we fix our eyes on Christ and allow him to transform us, our lives become a light that impacts others in ways we may never fully see. 

If you've ever wondered, who am I? Jesus' answer is both simple and profound: You are the light of the world and a city on a hill that cannot be hidden.

Rev. Dr. Abe Smith

Rev. Chip Robertson | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

Maybe you’ve built a house, paid someone to build one, or at least walked by a house being built. Sometimes an old house is torn down. Sometimes the land is cleared of brush and trees. Sometimes the land seems ready without much work, but it isn’t.

The most important part of the house requires more than clearing. It requires that the land be ravaged by heavy equipment, dirt moved, and sometimes hauled away. Holes must be drilled deep enough to hit bedrock. The land that seemed just fine is now scarred and battered, all because destruction is required before construction can begin, and because of that destruction, the foundation will be able to do its job. From that foundation, the foundation that required the removal of so much that seemed fine but was too weak to be of use, the house can begin to rise toward the sky.

We think of the Beatitudes as nice teachings—soft things.

But what if they are that and something else too? What if they are also clearing the land so that we can see the foundation of the kingdom of God? And what if they are arranged to suggest three steps for us: we kneel, then rise, then walk.

Rev. Dr. Abe Smith

Rev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

Every preacher is playing for second place. The greatest sermon ever preached was delivered by the greatest preacher who ever lived. The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) has shaped history, influenced cultures, and continues to transform lives today. 

Many of Jesus' most famous teachings come from these three chapters: being the salt of the earth, a city on a hill, loving our enemies, and treating others as we want to be treated. Yet before Jesus teaches people how to live, he begins somewhere even more important.

When Jesus sat down on a hillside overlooking the Sea of Galilee and began to speak, he saw a diverse and often overlooked crowd. They’d heard the world declare who was blessed: the wealthy, powerful, healthy, and successful. Jesus turned those expectations upside down. He announced that the poor in spirit, the mourning, the meek, and the struggling were the blessed ones, not because of their circumstances, but because they were loved by God.

The foundation of the Sermon on the Mount is not a list of rules for earning God's approval; it is the announcement that God's grace is unmerited and immediately available to everyone. Jesus teaches us how to live, not so that we can become loved by God, but because we already are. 

The Beatitudes remind us that our identity is rooted in God's love, and from that secure foundation we can live the life Jesus calls us to live.

Rev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

This year we are beginning a journey called “Blueprint: Building Lives of Faith, Hope, and Love.” We all want lives that are steady, resilient, and able to withstand life's challenges. Jesus teaches that this kind of life is built on a solid foundation. When our lives are founded in him, we can stand firm even when storms come.

The challenge is that many things compete for that foundation: money, power, pleasure, reputation, and control. Yet Jesus says that true stability comes not from simply hearing his words, but from putting them into practice. Through sermons and Bible studies, we learn God's teachings, but transformation happens when those teachings shape the way we live each day.

C.S. Lewis paints a beautiful picture of this process, describing God as a builder transforming a small cottage into a palace, "running up towers" and creating something greater than we could ever imagine. That is God's desire for each of us. As we follow Jesus and put his teachings into action, God is growing in us the three things that last: faith, hope, and love. Our prayer is that by the end of this series, we will look back and see that we have grown in faith, become more marked by hope, and learned to love God and others more deeply.

Rev. Chip Robertson

Rev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

For many of us, the fall season brings its own sense of renewal. New schedules, routines, and rhythms create opportunities to reflect on where we are and where we want to grow.

As we begin a new school year, Philippians 1:6 reminds us that God is always at work. Long before we were aware of it, God was pursuing us through His grace, and He continues that work today. 

In the Wesleyan tradition, prevenient grace reminds us that God knew and loved us before we knew Him, justifying grace assures us of forgiveness through Jesus Christ, and sanctifying grace points to God’s ongoing work of transformation and healing in our lives. God is not finished with us, and the good work He has begun is still unfolding.

This promise is not only personal but communal. God is at work in us and among us, shaping His church and inviting us to participate in His mission. As we journey together this year, we are called to build our lives around the things that endure: faith, hope, and love. 

These virtues are both gifts of God’s grace and markers of spiritual growth. As we follow Christ together, we can trust that the God who began a good work in us will faithfully carry it to completion.

Rev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

We live in a world full of reminders. The local news reminds us of what is happening in our community. Social media reminds us that it is our friend from high school’s birthday. Our calendars remind us about the appointment we almost forgot, and our cars remind us when they need gas. Every day, we encounter reminders that point us back to something happening in the world around us.

But what if we were more intentional about filling our lives with reminders that point us back to God? Human beings are prone to forgetfulness, especially when life becomes busy, stressful, or overwhelming. We can know about God’s goodness and faithfulness and still lose sight of them when our attention is pulled in a hundred different directions. Knowing is not always the same as remembering.

That is why remembrance matters. We need to intentionally build reminders of God’s goodness, faithfulness, and grace into the rhythms of our everyday lives. Just as our phones, social media, news, calendars, and daily routines constantly remind us of things, we can create rhythms that remind us of God’s grace, holiness, faithfulness, works, and salvation.

The question is not whether our lives will be filled with reminders. They will be. The question is, what will those reminders point us toward?

Rev. Dr. Abe Smith | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

Have you ever failed, really failed? It’s an awful feeling. Failure can leave us embarrassed, disappointed in ourselves, feeling like an imposter, and wondering whether we have let down the people we love most. It can even make us question whether God could still love us or use us.

In this sermon, we will look at the story of Peter, one of Jesus’ closest disciples. Peter wanted to follow Jesus with everything in him, yet when the moment came to stand faithfully beside him, Peter denied three times that he even knew Jesus.

Peter’s failure was painful, caused him to weep, and was impossible to undo. Yet, it was not the end of his story. After the Resurrection, Jesus met Peter on the shore, shared a meal with him, and offered him reconciliation and restoration. Jesus did not discard Peter; he restored him for renewed life, renewed purpose, and renewed service.

Failure is not the end of any story. Failure can be renewed in Jesus. Just like Peter, all of our failures can be restored through Jesus.

Rev. Chip Robertson | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide.

Human beings are created for connection. True life is found not in isolation but in communities shaped by grace, forgiveness, and love. We see that in Scripture. 

Matthew 18:20 says, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them." This verse is not about the minimum number of people required for God to be present. Rather, it is about purpose. Gathering "in Jesus' name" transforms a collection of individuals into a genuine community united around Christ. When people intentionally gather with Christ at the center, something greater than themselves is created—a "we" instead of a collection of isolated "I's."

Community is also important for worship. Singing, praying, speaking liturgy, and participating in worship together are described as practices that deepen human connection. Communal worship can strengthen empathy, trust, and social bonds. Even if you worship online but participate, it can have that same effect. 

Worship is not something spectators watch, but something participants experience together, creating a glimpse of God's presence among the community.