Lawrenceville Christian Church
by Lawrenceville Christian Church
Listen to audio sermons from Lawrenceville Christian Church featuring Rev. Diane Bales and Rev. Teresa Bensch. Lawrenceville Christian Church is located in Lawrenceville, Georgia in Gwinnett County. Find out more at lawrencevillechristianchurch.org
Episodes
-
Blessed Is a Promise - November 1, 2026
Who taught you what blessed looks like? On All Saints Sunday, we remember the faithful people who showed us. In the Beatitudes, Jesus does not hand us a checklist for earning God’s favor. He makes a promise to all who mourn, hunger, and hope, and we will carry that promise from the Lord’s Table…
more -
Taking Risks - October 25, 2026
This Sunday, we will continue our journey through the parables in Matthew’s gospel by exploring the parable of the three slaves and the talents. In the story, the master leaves for a long trip, and puts three slaves in charge of his considerable fortune. Two of the slaves invest the money they...
-
Blessed are the Awake - October 18, 2026
This Sunday, Rev. David Kenley will bring us a message based on the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 25. The parable of the bridesmaids, at first blush, seems kind of unfair. And most of us like for things to be fair. But is that really what the parable teaches? What can we do, and...
-
Election by Grace - October 11, 2026
This Sunday we turn to one of Jesus’ most vivid parables, the wedding banquet in Matthew 22:1–14, and explore a theme at the very heart of the gospel: Election by Grace. Matthew’s telling of this story is sharper and more urgent than the versions found in the other Gospels. His details remind us...
-
One Bread, One Body - October 4, 2026
This Sunday is World Communion Sunday. It’s a time when Christian churches and communities around the world celebrate global unity by gathering together for a celebration of communion. We will celebrate our connection with Christians around the world with word, prayer, song, and scripture read in...
-
Actions Louder than Words - September 27, 2026
This Sunday, we will take a look at another of the parables of Jesus. The day after entering Jerusalem on a donkey to shouts of “hosanna,” and turning over the money changers’ tables in the temple, Jesus returned to the temple to teach. The chief priests and elders, the political leaders of the...
-
Understanding Compassion - September 20, 2026
Jesus tells a parable about a landowner who hires workers throughout the day—some early, some late—and then pays everyone the same wage. The early workers complain, believing they deserve more, but the landowner reminds them that his generosity toward others does not lessen his faithfulness to...
-
Forgiveness Beyond Measure - September 13, 2026
This Sunday we continue our exploration in Matthew 18 of instructions about living in community. It deals with one of the most challenging questions: what does forgiveness require of me? As Jesus tells Peter, we are required to keep forgiving, over and over, because God has forgiven us completely...
-
Living in Community with Grace - September 6, 2026
This Sunday we turn to Matthew 18:15–20, a passage where Jesus speaks honestly and tenderly about the real work of living in community. It’s a text that meets us right where life happens, when relationships are strained, when misunderstandings arise, and when we’re unsure how to move forward with...
-
Psalm 139 - August 30, 2026
This Sunday, we journey through Psalm 139, one of Scripture’s most honest and courageous prayers. King David invites God to search his heart, examine his thoughts, and lead him in the everlasting way, and together, we will explore what it means to offer that same invitation in our own lives....
-
Who Do You Say I Am? - August 23, 2026
Every so often, a question comes along that doesn’t just seek an answer; it seeks you. It asks something deeper than information or opinion. It asks for honesty, courage, and the willingness to look inward. This week’s scripture brings us one of those questions. Jesus turns to His disciples and...
-
Reconciliation - August 16, 2026
This Sunday, we will step back into the Old Testament to take a look at part of the story of Joseph and his brothers. This passage comes near the end of Joseph’s story, when his brothers come to Egypt to beg for food, and discover Joseph is Pharaoh’s second in command, leading Egypt’s efforts to...
-
Righteousness: By Law and By Faith - August 9, 2026
This Sunday we turn to a rich passage in Romans where Paul draws a clear distinction between righteousness rooted in the law and righteousness rooted in faith. One is written; the other speaks. Paul invites the church to consider how righteousness is no longer something we achieve, but something...
-
Weeds, Wealth, and the Kingdom of God - August 2, 2026
This Sunday, we will return to the parables Jesus shared with his disciples, as he taught them about the surprising kingdom of God. Jesus compares God’s kingdom to a mustard seed, to yeast mixed into flour, and to people who sell everything they have to gain something precious. Like all parables,...
-
A Foundation That Cannot Be Shaken - July 26, 2026
Last week we remembered our identity as God’s beloved children, people who “wait with patience” because the Spirit is at work within us. This Sunday, we turn to Romans 8:26–39, where Paul reveals the foundation that makes such patient hope possible. Here Paul speaks directly to the realities of...
-
Children Who Wait with Patience - July 19, 2026
This Sunday, we begin a two‑week exploration of Romans 8 — a chapter that reminds us who we are and what holds us when life becomes difficult. In Week One, we’ll focus on Romans 8:12–25 and the gift of our identity as God’s children. Paul tells us that before we act, serve, or endure, we must...
-
Sowing Seeds of Abundance - July 12, 2026
This week, we will take a look at one of Jesus’s best-known parables, one that appears in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. It is sometimes called the parable of the seed or the parable of the soil, but the author of Matthew’s gospel names it the Parable of the Sower. As Jesus explains…
more -
The Easy Yoke - July 5, 2026
As you know, Teresa and I usually preach from the Revised Common Lectionary, which gives us a sequence of scriptures for the different seasons of the church year. Some of the lectionary scriptures are familiar stories that are enjoyable to retell and connect to our lives of faith. At other times,...
-
A Big Table - June 21, 2026
As we continue our Honest Conversations this week, we will shift our focus to Jesus’s parable of the great banquet. In this simple story of a man who invited the poor and lame to his banquet after the invited guests backed out, we will hear important instructions on how to offer hospitality and...
-
Compassion That Organizes (Part 4) - June 14, 2026
This week we’ll gather around Mark 6: 30–40, Mark’s brief but powerful introduction to the feeding of the five thousand. Unlike the other gospels, Mark begins with weary disciples returning from mission and a tired Jesus seeking rest. Yet when the crowd arrives, Jesus is “moved with compassion”,...
-
A New Passover - June 7, 2026
This Sunday, we return to our sermon series on feeding the hungry, where we are examining the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 in the different gospels. Our focus this week is on the story in the gospel of John. This story has a lot in common with the versions found in the other gospels, but also...
-
Feeding the Hungry: Part 2 - May 24, 2026
This Sunday, we continue our four‑week journey into the question at the heart of our “Land of Plenty” conversations: How do we ensure that everyone has the food they need to live and thrive? Last week, we began by listening to Matthew’s account of Jesus feeding a hungry crowd, a story that…
more -
Feeding the Hungry: Part 1 - May 17, 2026
Before we begin talking about how to ensure that everyone has the food they need, it’s important to ground ourselves in scripture. We will take a look at Matthew’s account of Jesus feeding a large crowd with a small amount of food (interestingly enough, the second time Jesus fed a crowd in...
-
A Community of Hope - May 10, 2026
This Sunday, we continue our Easter journey with a passage spoken in one of the most tender and uncertain moments of Jesus’ ministry. In John 14, Jesus prepares his disciples for life in a world shaped by fear and domination, and he promises them the gift they will need most: the Spirit who will...
-
Reflections on Mission Trips - May 3, 2026
This Sunday, we have the special opportunity to hear from Hugh Yoon and Paul Yoon, both of whom went on recent mission trips. They will share about their experiences and the places they saw God. We may even get to see some photos! After their presentations, we will honor Hugh, who is graduating...
-
Living in Christian Community - April 26, 2026
Over the past two Sundays, we have been examining Peter’s first sermon, preached to a large crowd on Pentecost Sunday. This week, we will move from Peter’s first sermon to a description of the first Christian community in Jerusalem — a community that studied and worshipped and prayed and ate...
-
An Invitation to a New Identity - April 19, 2026
In the risen Christ, God invites us into a new Spirit‑shaped identity, one that turns us toward hope, transformation, and participation in God’s mission for the world. This Sunday, we continue listening to Peter’s Pentecost sermon in Acts 2, where the risen Jesus is proclaimed as the Messiah who...
-
Practicing Resurrection - April 12, 2026
Christ is risen! Christ is risen, indeed! The secular world moves on from Easter very quickly. The candy goes on sale, we put away the decorations, and stores set up displays for the next big holiday. But in the Christian church, Easter is so important that we continue to celebrate it for six...
-
Easter Sunday - April 5, 2026
Christ is risen! Christ is risen, indeed! Join us this Easter Sunday as we gather in joyful worship to celebrate the hope and new life of the resurrection. This year, we will hear the Easter story through fresh and moving perspectives, that of a Roman soldier who witnessed the events firsthand…
more -
The Triumphant Journey to the Cross - Palm Sunday - March 29, 2026
This Sunday, as we celebrate Palm Sunday, our worship experience is crafted to draw us into the narrative of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, a moment filled with both celebration and profound spiritual significance. We will hear about the experience from two bystanders watching the events...
-
Campus Ministry Sunday - March 22, 2026
This coming Sunday, we will welcome visitors from The Table, the campus ministry in Athens that Rev. Diane works with. Rev. Haley Lerner, a United Church of Christ minister, will preach that morning about the significance of ecumenical campus ministry, and we hope to have a some campus ministry...
-
Rejoicing in What We Cannot Yet See - March 15, 2026
This Sunday, we pause in the middle of our Lenten journey for Laetare Sunday, a day whose very name means “rejoice.” In a season often marked by reflection and repentance, Laetare offers a gentle lift, an invitation to notice the quiet ways God is already at work, planting hope before we can see...
-
Lessons from a Wilderness Walker - March 8, 2026
This Sunday, as we continue our journey through the season of Lent, we welcome guest preacher Rev. Donna Gunter to the pulpit. She will preach from Matthew 4: 1 – 11. Here’s how she describes her message: During the season of Lent we often speak of journeying with Christ to Calvary. A significant...
-
Born From Above - March 1, 2026
This Sunday, as we continue our journey through the season of Lent, we will consider a well-known story from John’s gospel – the passage that includes John 3:16 and the instructions about being “born from above” (or “born again”). Nicodemus, a well-known Jewish leader, came to see Jesus in the…
more -
If You Are the Son of God... - February 22, 2026
This Sunday, as we enter the season of Lent, we take a step back in the early life of Jesus, to the story of Jesus being tested in the wilderness immediately after his baptism. It’s a story of temptations and faithful response. It’s also a story that shows us clearly who Jesus is. As we consider...
-
From Hearing to Doing... to Seeing - February 15, 2026
This Sunday, we stand between two mountains in Matthew’s Gospel. Over the past weeks, we’ve listened as Jesus brought the Sermon on the Mount to his disciples, reminding us that true discipleship is more than hearing his words. It is putting those words into practice. Matthew paints a picture of...
-
Light of the World and Salt of the Earth - February 8, 2026
This Sunday, we continue exploring the Sermon on the Mount as written in Matthew’s gospel. After describing those who are blessed in the Beatitudes, Jesus spends the rest of the sermon giving instructions to his disciples about how to be followers. The beginning of this instruction passage are…
more -
Come and See - January 18, 2025
Last Sunday we explored Matthew’s account of the baptism of Jesus. This Sunday, on the third week after Epiphany, we shift to John’s gospel. The author of this fourth gospel paints a different picture of the baptism and call of the first disciples. John the Baptist prepared the world for Jesus by...
-
Into the Water, Into the Light - January 11, 2025
In this season, just after Epiphany, we stand in the glow of a light that reveals who Christ is and who we are called to be. The story of Jesus’ baptism in Matthew 3:13-17 invites us to step into that light with fresh eyes. At the Jordan River, the heavens open, the Spirit descends, and a voice...
-
Epiphany: A Kingdom Shaped by Compassion - January 4, 2026
This Sunday, we enter the season of Epiphany, a time when the church celebrates God’s light breaking into the world in ways that reveal truth, expose injustice, and guide us toward hope. Instead of beginning with the familiar story of the Magi in Matthew, we’ll turn first to Psalm 72, which…
more -
Love That Comes Near - December 21, 2025
As we arrive at the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we turn our attention to Love – the love that does not remain distant or abstract, but draws close in the most unexpected ways. Our scripture from Isaiah 7 speaks into a moment of fear and uncertainty, offering a sign that God will not abandon the...
-
A Vision of Peace - December 7, 2025
As we move through the season of Advent, we are waiting and anticipating our celebration of the arrival of the Christ child. This Sunday, we will light the candle of peace. We will explore a familiar prophecy from Isaiah, a vision of a coming king from the line of David, who will rule with peace...
-
Christ the King - November 23, 2025
This Sunday is the last Sunday of the Christian year, known as Christ the King Sunday or Reign of Christ Sunday. It is a feast day in the Catholic church, established by Pope Pius XI in 1925, in response to an increase in secularism and ultra-nationalism around the world. For Catholics and...
-
The Courage to Testify - November 16, 2025
This Sunday, we journey with Jesus from the joyful welcome of Zacchaeus to the trembling warnings of Luke 21: 5–19. As the temple’s stones shimmer and the disciples marvel, Jesus speaks of collapse, wars, earthquakes, famine, and persecution. But in the midst of upheaval, he offers a radical...
-
Great Joy - November 9, 2025
You may remember the story of Zacchaeus from Vacation Bible Story – the short tax collector who climbed a tree to see Jesus passing, and as a result hosted Jesus at his home. There’s even a song we used to sing: “Zacchaeus was a wee little man…” But as we see so often in scripture, there’s more…
more -
Marked by the Spirit - November 2, 2025
This Sunday, we gather to celebrate All Saints’ Day, a sacred moment to honor the great cloud of witnesses who have gone before us and those who walk beside us still. The sermon Marked by the Spirit invites us to reflect on Ephesians 1:11-23, where Paul speaks of divine inheritance, spiritual...
-
The Pharisee, The Tax Collector, Righteousness, and Repentance - October 26, 2025
This Sunday, we will consider a familiar parable of Jesus, about the Pharisee and the tax collector who went to the Temple to pray. We’ve heard the story so many times that we think we understand everything about it – it’s bad to be like the Pharisee and good to be like the tax collector? But…
more -
Living the Now, Trusting the Next - October 19, 2025
Last week, we heard Jeremiah’s call to “seek the welfare of the city” — even the city of exile. We were challenged to plant gardens, build homes, and extend shalom to those we once called enemies. It was a radical invitation to live fully, even in unfamiliar soil. This week, Jeremiah’s voice…
more -
Do Life, Plant Seeds - October 12, 2025
When the world feels broken, when exile—literal or emotional—disrupts our sense of home and hope, it’s tempting to hold our breath and wait for rescue. However, in Jeremiah 29, God speaks to a people displaced and disoriented, not with promises of immediate deliverance, but with a call to live...
About this show
Listen to audio sermons from Lawrenceville Christian Church featuring Rev. Diane Bales and Rev. Teresa Bensch. Lawrenceville Christian Church is located in Lawrenceville, Georgia in Gwinnett County. Find out more at lawrencevillechristianchurch.org
Hosted by
Lawrenceville Christian Church
Categories