We ask God about the big things in life and the small things. We pray about big topics--like the eternal nature of God's coming kingdom--but also about the matters of life we often take for granted: where we live, what we drink, and what we eat. By modeling this attitude for us, Jesus teaches us that God is so intimately involved in our daily life that even something as seemingly insignificant as a loaf of bread is divinely provided for us by our loving God.
When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He made sure to stress just how significant a commitment it is to say, "Your kingdom come." As always, Jesus wasn't just concerned with the words coming out of His follower's mouths, He got right to the heart of the matter. Praying The Lord's Prayer requires a type of surrender that acknowledges God's divine supremacy and our total dependency. When we pray this prayer, we hand over the key to the castle of our life.
The most important question the disciples ever asked Jesus was the question, Lord, will you teach us to pray? As Jesus set out to teach them how, He demonstrated that praying well starts with properly understanding God and our relationship to Him. The very first phrase of The Lord's Prayer is the key to unlocking a successful prayer life in ourselves as well.
Many Christians are asked the question, What makes Christianity unique? What makes it different from any other religion? The answer can be found in the first two words of the prayer Jesus teaches His disciples to pray in Luke 11: Our Father. No other religion can claim such an intimate, personal communion between God and the worshiper. No other religion calls God their father. As Jesus teaches them--and us--to pray, there are some perspective-changing, life-orienting truths to learn from these two words: Our Father.
The religions of the world are preoccupied with performance. Prayer, rituals, works, and traditions give people a false sense of righteousness. And this is not a new phenomenon; in fact, Jesus confronted the same themes 2,000 years ago. The Pharisees were the masters of seeming righteous, they performed in all the right ways, but their hearts were far from God. As Jesus calls them out for their hypocrisy, we can glean a valuable reminder about what true worship--and what truly living for Christ--is all about.
His friends have condemned him, his wife has forsaken him, and he must now face the final barrage of enemy arrows in the solitude of his mind. Will this prove to be Job's last stand or the devil's?
His friends have condemned him, his wife has forsaken him, and he must now face the final barrage of enemy arrows in the solitude of his mind. Will this prove to be Job's last stand or the devil's?
In this sermon, Stephen Davey recounts how Katharina Luther’s courageous escape from a convent and marriage to Martin Luther helped reshape the church’s view of marriage during the Reformation. Transformed by the truth of justification by faith alone in Romans 1:17, she entered a union that modeled commitment over compatibility, humility over self-interest, and ministry partnership over isolation. Despite public slander, hardship, and relentless labor, Katharina managed their home, finances, hospitality, and farm, enabling Luther’s preaching and teaching ministry to flourish. Their marriage demonstrated that the home could serve as a living testimony of the gospel and an extension of ministry. Davey concludes that Katharina’s quiet perseverance and sacrificial faithfulness became a revolutionary legacy of light for generations to follow.
In this sermon, Stephen Davey recounts how God sustained William Cowper through lifelong battles with severe depression and despair while using him to leave a lasting legacy of gospel truth. Though Cowper repeatedly wrestled with feelings of abandonment and even attempted suicide, God anchored his soul in the doctrine of Christ’s propitiation, especially through Romans 3:24–25. Davey explains that Cowper’s suffering did not signal God’s rejection but became the soil from which some of the church’s richest hymns of grace were written. Through faithful friends, Scripture, service, and God’s providence, Cowper continued to testify of salvation by grace alone. Davey concludes that powerful faith does not eliminate suffering, but it carries believers safely through it, proving that God’s mercy shines brightest in the darkest valleys.
In his sermon on Romans 5:9–11, Stephen Davey explains that assurance is a perfect gift from God, giving believers safety, certainty, and enjoyment in their salvation. Paul teaches that Christians are saved from God’s wrath, saved by Christ’s death and resurrection, and saved for joyful worship and fellowship with God. Davey emphasizes that salvation is secure because it rests not on human effort but on Christ’s finished work and His ongoing intercession. Just as Christ’s death reconciled believers while they were enemies, His living presence guarantees their future salvation. Davey concludes that true assurance fuels joyful praise, confident obedience, and grateful living before the God who has redeemed and preserved His people.
In this sermon, Stephen Davey traces how God used Hudson Taylor’s deep trust in the finished work of Christ to shape a life of radical faith, humility, and endurance. Converted as a teenager through meditating on Jesus’ words “It is finished,” Taylor learned early to rely on God alone for provision, direction, and strength. Davey highlights Taylor’s willingness to suffer loss, poverty, misunderstanding, and criticism in order to reach China’s interior with the gospel. By identifying with Chinese culture and trusting God through relentless trials, Taylor helped establish hundreds of mission stations and the China Inland Mission, which transformed an entire nation for Christ. Davey concludes that Taylor’s enduring legacy was not strategy or success, but childlike faith in an illustrious Master who accomplishes His work through willing, surrendered servants.
In this sermon, Stephen Davey traces how God used Amy Carmichael’s strong will, suffering, and obedience to build a lasting legacy of eternal impact. From childhood determination to missionary service in India, Amy chose costly sacrifice over comfort, guided by her life verse about building with gold, silver, and precious stones. God redirected her ministry to rescue children trapped in temple prostitution, leading her to found the Dohnavur Fellowship, where hundreds of children found physical safety and spiritual life. Though misunderstood, criticized, and bedridden for her final twenty years, Amy continued to serve through writing and prayer. Davey concludes that God values the quality of faithful obedience over public success, and a life surrendered to Christ will shine long after it ends.
