Sunday Morning Message

We begin our summer sermon series this week with Psalm 20, a short royal psalm that functions as a prayer for the king before going into battle. It’s a confident, corporate plea for divine help and victory.

In his recent guest message at Gwathmey Baptist Church, Dr. Mark Becton unpacked Ephesians 5:22-33 as God’s beautiful design for marriage. It portrays marriage as a profound picture of Christ’s sacrificial love for His church and the church’s respectful response.Wives are called to submit to their husbands as to the Lord, reflecting the church’s submission to Christ. Husbands are commanded to love their wives sacrificially—just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her—to sanctify, cherish, and nourish her as His own body.The passage culminates in the profound mystery: marriage is not merely human but a living illustration of the gospel, calling couples to reflect Christ’s self-giving love and unity in their daily lives. Dr. Becton emphasized building strong, Christ-centered marriages that honor God and point others to Him.

Ephesians 6:1-9 instructs Christian households on mutual respect and responsibility. Children should obey their parents in the Lord, while parents must not provoke their children but raise them in godly discipline. Servants are to obey their masters sincerely as serving Christ, and masters should treat servants justly, knowing both answer to the same heavenly Master.

Ephesians 6:14-23 describes the pieces of the armor of God and calls believers to prayer and steadfastness. Stand firm with the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes of the gospel of peace, shield of faith (to extinguish fiery darts), helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (the word of God).Pray continually in the Spirit, stay alert, and intercede for all the saints—especially that Paul would boldly proclaim the gospel. The chapter closes with Tychicus delivering news and a blessing of peace, love with faith, and grace to those who love the Lord.

Ephesians 6:10-13 urges believers to be strong in the Lord and put on the whole armor of God. The passage explains that our real battle is not against flesh and blood (people), but against spiritual forces of evil—rulers, authorities, cosmic powers, and dark spiritual forces. Therefore, we must take up God’s full armor so we can stand firm against the devil’s schemes and withstand in the evil day.

Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her—cleansing, nourishing, and cherishing her. Wives, respect your husbands. This profound mystery reveals that marriage is far more than a human union: it is a living picture of Christ’s sacrificial love for His bride, the Church.In these closing verses of our two-week series on Godly Marriage, Paul pulls everything together. A Christ-centered marriage isn’t built on cultural ideas of romance or equality, but on the gospel: husbands leading through self-giving love, wives responding with honor, and both reflecting the beautiful, unbreakable relationship between Christ and His people. When we live this way, our marriages display the glory of the gospel to a watching world.

Wives are called to submit to their own husbands as to the Lord. The husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church (his body, of which he is the Savior). Therefore, just as the church submits to Christ, wives should submit to their husbands in everything.This is part one in the two-week message.

In Ephesians 5:15-21, Paul urges us to live wisely in evil days by making the most of every opportunity. Rather than being controlled by wine or the empty pleasures of this world, we’re commanded to be filled with the Spirit—speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in our hearts to the Lord, and giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of Jesus Christ. This Spirit-filled life overflows into joyful worship, constant gratitude, and humble submission to one another out of reverence for Christ.

In Ephesians 5:1-14, Paul calls us to imitate God as dearly loved children and to live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us. He urges us to walk in the light—rejecting sexual immorality, impurity, greed, and coarse joking—because these things have no place among God’s holy people. Instead of partnering with the darkness, we’re to expose it, wake up from spiritual sleep, and let Christ shine on us so we can live as children of light.

In Ephesians 4:17-32, Paul gets intensely practical about what the new life in Christ actually looks like day-to-day. He urges us to stop living like the surrounding culture—futile in thinking, darkened in understanding, and enslaved to sensual impurity—and instead to put off the old self completely. We’re called to be renewed in the spirit of our minds, speak truth, control our anger, work honestly, guard our words, and replace bitterness, rage, and malice with kindness, compassion, and forgiveness—just as Christ forgave us.

In Ephesians 4:13-24, Paul paints a powerful vision of what spiritual maturity looks like. He calls us to grow up into the full stature of Christ—united in faith, stable in truth, and no longer tossed around by every new teaching or trapped in the old patterns of this world. We’re invited to take off the old self, corrupted by deceitful desires, be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and put on the new self—created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Christ descended to the depths and ascended on high, filling all things and giving gifts to His church—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. These equip believers to serve, so the body of Christ grows into unity and maturity, reaching the full stature of Christ. No longer tossed by false teachings, we speak truth in love, growing up into Christ our Head. Joined and held together by Him, each part works properly, building the body up in love.

This week, Pastor Mike Cauthorne brought a powerful message from Ephesians 4:1-16. He challenged us to walk worthy of our calling—with humility, gentleness, patience, and love—eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Pastor Mike reminded us that Christ has gifted the church with leaders to equip the saints so the body can grow into maturity, becoming more like Jesus, our Head. It was a convicting and encouraging word for our church!

This week, we received a powerful message from Ephesians 3:1-13, where the Apostle Paul, writing as a prisoner for Christ, unveiled the glorious mystery of the Gospel. Once hidden for ages, this mystery has now been revealed by the Spirit: that Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. The speaker led us into the breathtaking truth of God’s eternal plan—displaying the manifold wisdom of God to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places through the church. We were reminded that we have boldness and confident access to God through faith in Christ, and that Paul’s suffering was for our glory. It was a deeply encouraging word that stirred fresh awe at the riches of God’s grace!

This Easter Sunday, we gathered for a beautiful sunrise service as we celebrated Resurrection Sunday. The message powerfully proclaimed the hope of the empty tomb—that Jesus Christ, who was crucified and buried, rose triumphantly from the dead on the third day, conquering sin, death, and the grave forever. Just as the first rays of dawn broke over the horizon, we were reminded that because He lives, we too have new life, forgiveness, and the promise of eternal hope in Him. It was a joyful, faith-stirring morning that filled our hearts with worship and renewed assurance in the risen Savior!

This week, Bill Carter brought a powerful message from Ephesians 2:11-22, reminding us that we were once Gentiles, far off, separated from Christ and without hope in the world. But now, in Christ Jesus, we who were once far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. He has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, creating one new man and reconciling both Jew and Gentile to God through the cross.

This week, Pastor Mike brought a powerful message from Ephesians 2:1-10, reminding us that we were once dead in our trespasses and sins, walking according to the course of this world. Yet God, rich in mercy and great love, made us alive together with Christ—by grace we have been saved! Through faith, not of our own works, we have become His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for the good works He prepared beforehand. Pastor Mike led us into the life-changing truth of God’s unmerited favor and our new identity in Him.

This week's message culminates in Paul's prayer (Ephesians 1:15–23), praying for the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so believers' hearts may be enlightened to know their hope, inheritance, and the immeasurable power working in them—the same power that raised and exalted Christ above all authorities, seating Him at God's right hand as head over the church.

This week's message comes from Pastor Jeff Chadwick of the Mission Centers of Houston. Jeff formerly called Richmond home before moving to Houston a decade ago. His main message comes from John 6:25-29, 35, recording the crowd finding Jesus on the other side of the lake after the feeding miracle and questioning how He arrived there, to which Jesus responds that they seek Him not because of the miraculous signs but because they received physical bread and were filled.He urges them not to labor for perishable food but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give, sealed by the Father; when they ask what works God requires, Jesus declares that the work of God is to believe in the One He has sent, and later He proclaims, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty,” shifting focus from temporary sustenance to Himself as the source of everlasting spiritual satisfaction.

Ephesians 1:3-14 is a majestic, single-sentence doxology (in the original Greek) praising God the Father for every spiritual blessing bestowed upon believers in Christ, including being chosen before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless, predestined for adoption as sons through Jesus according to God's gracious will—all to the praise of His glorious grace.The passage continues by celebrating redemption and forgiveness through Christ's blood as lavished riches of grace, the revelation of God's mystery to unite all things under Christ, believers' inheritance as predestined heirs, and being sealed with the promised Holy Spirit as a guarantee of future redemption, culminating again in praise to God's glory.

Ephesians 1:1-2 serves as the opening greeting of Paul's letter, where he identifies himself as an apostle of Christ Jesus appointed by God's will and addresses the recipients as God's holy people (saints) in Ephesus who are faithful in Christ Jesus.He then extends a blessing of grace and peace to them from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, setting a tone of divine favor and reconciliation that will unfold throughout the epistle's profound teachings on spiritual blessings and the church's identity in Christ.

1 John 5:13-21 concludes the epistle by assuring believers who trust in Jesus Christ that they can know they possess eternal life, while also providing confidence in prayer—that God hears and answers requests aligned with His will—and guidance on interceding for fellow believers who sin (distinguishing between sins that do not lead to death, for which prayer brings life, and a sin that leads to death, about which prayer is not commanded).The passage further affirms that those born of God do not persist in sin, are protected from the evil one, belong to God rather than the world under Satan's influence, and have understanding through the Son of God who is the true God and source of eternal life, culminating in the urgent exhortation: "Dear children, keep yourselves from idols."

1 John 5:1-12 teaches that everyone who believes Jesus is the Christ is born of God, leading to love for both God and His children through obedience to His commands, which are not burdensome, and this faith enables believers to overcome the world.The passage then affirms the testimony to Jesus as the Son of God—coming by water and blood, confirmed by the Spirit—that grants eternal life to those who believe in Him, while unbelief rejects God's witness and forfeits that life.

1 John 4:7-21 teaches that God is love by nature, and everyone who truly loves others is born of God and knows Him, while those who do not love do not know God. God's love was revealed through sending His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins—not because we loved Him first, but because He loved us first. Therefore, believers must love one another, as this perfect love casts out fear, perfects us, and proves our abiding in God; anyone who claims to love God yet hates their brother is a liar, for loving the visible brother is essential to loving the unseen God.

We return to the book of 1 John this week, looking at the topic of false teaching. It instructs believers to test every spirit and teacher to ensure they confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, distinguishing the Spirit of God from the spirit of the Antichrist. It assures Christians that they have overcome false teachers because the Spirit within them is greater than the spirit of error in the world. 

In 2 Chronicles 20:1-30, King Jehoshaphat and Judah face a vast invading army, respond with national fasting, humble corporate prayer, and complete dependence on God, who promises through a prophet that the battle belongs to Him. As the people march out singing praises to the Lord, He causes the enemy forces to destroy one another, granting Judah a complete victory without fighting, demonstrating that spiritual warfare is won through prayer, faith, worship, and trusting God rather than human strength.

In 1 Kings 8:22-30, King Solomon stands before the altar and the assembly of Israel to dedicate the newly built temple, praising God as unmatched in heaven and earth for faithfully keeping His covenant and promises to David. He acknowledges that even the highest heavens cannot contain God, yet he asks the Lord to hear prayers directed toward the temple, keep His eyes open upon it day and night, and forgive the sins of His people Israel when they pray from there.

Pastor Mike begins a look at the topic of prayer to begin 2026, using Ephesians 3 as the core text in this week's message.

In 1 John 3:11-24, the apostle emphasizes that the core message from the beginning of the Christian faith is to love one another, contrasting this with Cain's hatred and murder of his brother as an example of evil. True love is demonstrated not merely in words but in sacrificial actions, as exemplified by Jesus laying down His life for us, and we ought to help brothers and sisters in need. By loving in this way and keeping God's commands—to believe in Jesus Christ and love one another—we abide in Him, gain assurance before God, and know His presence through the Holy Spirit He has given us.

This week Pastor Mike explores 1 John 3:1-10, where the apostle John marvels at the extravagant love the Father has lavished on us, calling us His children—and that is truly what we are! He reminds us of our future hope: when Christ appears, we will be like Him. This transforms our lives, purifying us as we abstain from sin, for no one born of God continues in it. True children of God are marked by practicing righteousness and loving one another, distinguishing them from those who belong to the devil. A powerful call to live out our divine identity!

This scripture provides a warning to believers that it is the last hour, marked by the appearance of many antichrists—false teachers who departed from the church and deny that Jesus is the Christ—while urging true Christians to abide in Him and the truth they received from the beginning, empowered by the Holy Spirit's anointing, so they may have confidence at His return and demonstrate their new birth through practicing righteousness.

John urges believers to live out the old-yet-new commandment to love one another as proof of walking in the light, encourages every stage of faith for having known and overcome through Christ, and warns them not to love the fleeting world or its lusts and pride, because only the one who does the will of God abides forever.

The eleven disciples go to a mountain in Galilee where they see the risen Jesus, worship him despite some doubts, and receive his Great Commission to make disciples of all nations by baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey his commands, with the assurance that he is with them always to the end of the age.

After an earthquake rolls back the stone from Jesus' tomb, an angel announces his resurrection to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, who then encounter the risen Jesus himself, while the guards report the event to the chief priests, who bribe them to spread the false story that the disciples stole the body.

In the evening, Joseph of Arimathea, a rich disciple, asks Pilate for Jesus’ body, wraps it in linen, and lays it in his own new tomb, rolling a large stone across the entrance; Mary Magdalene and the other Mary sit watching. The next day, the chief priests and Pharisees persuade Pilate to secure the tomb with guards and a seal, lest the disciples steal the body and claim Jesus has risen.

Pastor Steve Bray from Mile One Mission in Newfoundland visits is this Sunday and talks about the importance of churches who are on mission to help missions.

From noon until three o'clock darkness covers the land; Jesus cries out, "My God, why have you forsaken me?" and dies. Immediately the temple curtain tears, the earth quakes, tombs open, saints are raised, the centurion confesses "Truly this was the Son of God," and the faithful women watch from afar.

Roman soldiers mock Jesus by stripping him, dressing him in a scarlet robe and crown of thorns, bowing in fake homage while beating him, then lead him away to be crucified. As Jesus hangs on the cross, passersby, religious leaders, and even the two criminals crucified alongside him hurl insults and taunt him, challenging him to save himself if he truly is the Son of God.

During the Passover festival, Pontius Pilate, following custom, offers the crowd a choice between releasing the notorious prisoner Barabbas or Jesus, whom he knows to be innocent, while his wife warns him in a dream to avoid condemning the latter. Swayed by the chief priests and elders, the crowd demands Barabbas's release and insists on crucifying Jesus, shouting down Pilate's protests about any crime committed.

In Matthew 27:1-14, the chief priests and elders of the people convene early in the morning to plot Jesus' execution, binding him and handing him over to Pontius Pilate the governor, while Judas Iscariot, overcome with remorse upon seeing Jesus condemned, returns the thirty pieces of silver to the priests, who deem it blood money unfit for the temple treasury and use it instead to purchase the potter's field as a burial place for foreigners, thereafter called the Field of Blood, before Judas hangs himself in despair. When brought before Pilate, Jesus acknowledges his kingship by replying "You have said so" to the governor's question about whether he is the King of the Jews, but he makes no further response to the chief priests' and elders' numerous accusations, leaving Pilate amazed.

In Matthew 26:69-75, Peter, warming himself in the high priest's courtyard, is accused three times of being a follower of Jesus—first by a servant girl, then by bystanders noting his Galilean accent, and finally by others—and he denies any knowledge of him each time, even invoking oaths and curses in the third denial. As the rooster crows immediately after, fulfilling Jesus' earlier prophecy, Peter remembers his vow to stand by his master and breaks down in bitter weeping.

Our guest speaker, Steve Freeman, uses his life story to detail how God has been working in and through him since he was brought into the world, nearly 4 months premature.

After being arrested, Jesus is taken to Caiaphas the high priest, where the Sanhedrin assembles and seeks false testimony against him to justify his execution, though the witnesses' accounts prove inconsistent until the high priest directly questions Jesus about being the Messiah, the Son of God. Jesus affirms his divine identity by declaring that the Son of Man will be seen seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven, prompting the high priest to tear his robes, accuse him of blasphemy, and secure the council's verdict of death, after which they spit on, strike, and mock him.

In Matthew 26:47-56, Judas betrays Jesus with a kiss, leading to his arrest by a crowd armed with swords and clubs sent by the chief priests and elders. Despite a disciple's attempt to resist, Jesus surrenders peacefully, fulfilling scripture, as his disciples flee.

In Matthew 26:36-46, Jesus, overwhelmed with sorrow, prays in the Garden of Gethsemane, asking God to remove the cup of suffering but submitting to His will. Despite urging His disciples to stay awake and pray, He finds them sleeping, highlighting their weakness as He faces His impending betrayal and crucifixion alone.

In 1 John 2:7-14, the author emphasizes the commandment to love one another, presenting it as both an old truth known from the beginning and a new command exemplified by Jesus’ life. He encourages believers by affirming their spiritual growth, noting that the darkness of sin is fading as the light of God’s truth shines in them.

We celebrate today's river baptism by looking at scripture that supports the spiritual significance of baptism for Christians. It explains that through baptism, believers are united with Jesus Christ in his death, symbolizing the death of their old, sinful selves.

Elder Denny Perkins provides this Sunday's message from Titus 3, emphasizing living as godly citizens, marked by humility, peace, and good deeds, reflecting God's grace and mercy. Paul instructs Titus to remind believers to submit to authorities, avoid quarrels, and show kindness, as they await the hope of eternal life through Christ.

This week's message comes from Elder Bill Carter on Titus 2. instructing believers to live godly lives, with older men and women teaching younger generations to embody virtues like self-control, love, and good works. Paul emphasizes sound doctrine and behavior that reflects the gospel, ensuring the church's witness remains strong.

Titus 1, written by Paul, instructs Titus to appoint qualified elders in Crete who are blameless, faithful, and able to teach sound doctrine to counter false teachers. It emphasizes the importance of godly leadership and rebuking those who spread deceptive teachings for personal gain.