Trial to Triumph (part 4) Sermon Audio, Video, & Questions

On Sunday, April 6, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on John 18:28-40.  This message was part 4 of the “Trial to Triumph” Easter sermon series.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video from the message to listen to/watch, download or share.

Sermon Questions:

  1. Pray
  2. Read John 18:28-40
  3. Today’s verses involve looking at Pontius Pilate’s and the Jewish leaders’ responses to Jesus.  Before today’s message, what did you know about Pontius Pilate, and the reasons for the Jewish leadership’s rejection of Jesus?
  4. The Jewish leaders wanted Pilate’s help in executing Jesus in order to kill Jesus in a way that would publicly humiliate Him, and hopefully squash the Jesus movement as a result.  They assumed that hanging Jesus from a tree would reveal that He was cursed before God.  However, Jesus took the curse of sin in order to free us from the curse our sin required!  God used the sinful and selfish decisions of men to work together His perfect plan of salvation.  How has this study helped you understand the purpose of the cross?
  5. How would you describe your response to Jesus?  Like His disciples have you received Him (John 1:12), or like the Jewish leaders have you rejected Him (John 1:11)?
  6. In what ways (if any) are you tempted to have your religious practice take priority over your relationship with God?
  7. Jesus, the innocent, died in the place of us, the guilty.  Take a moment and thank God for this saving exchange!
  8. What stands out to you most from this message?  Any particular takeaway?

To access these questions in pdf format click here.

 

To listen to message offline, click the link:

Trial tomb Triumph #4 4.6.25

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch online use YouTube:

 

Trial to Triumph (part 4) Sermon Preview

There was no love lost between Governor Pontius Pilate and the Jewish Sanhedrin.  For the first several years of his reign as governor of Judaea, the Jewish religious leaders had no use for this Roman appointee, and clashed with him regularly.  The religious leaders hated having a Roman presence in their sacred cities, and had a particular disdain for Pilate and his actions intended to Romanize the region of Judaea.  One particular story emerging from that era had Pilate bringing images of Caesar into Jerusalem, only to have the Jewish religious leaders vigorously protest.  They were willing to die at the end of a Roman sword to have the images of Caesar removed from their capital city.  Pilate relented that day and had the images removed, but the friction between the Jews and their Roman Governor continued throughout the time of Jesus’ public ministry.

Given this contentious relationship, it is odd to see (in John 18:28-40) the Jews seeking Pilate’s help after their arrest of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.  They hated everything Roman, but Pilate had something they needed … the ability to order a public execution.

The Jewish leaders were not seeking a quiet disappearance of Jesus, or merely a silencing of His message.  No, they were seeking a public humiliation of Jesus of Nazareth to create the appearance that He certainly was not the Messiah many believed Him to be.  If the Jewish religious leaders had stoned Jesus (like they did Stephen in Acts 7), Jesus would have died, but they would have appeared to be responding only in a fit of anger and rage.  The Jewish religious leaders wanted the Jesus movement to end in a public spectacle where Jesus would be hanging from a tree in crucifixion.  This punishment was only carried out by the Romans, so they needed Pilate’s help.  In the Old Testament text, it is written that “cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.”  The Jewish leaders believed that a public execution, hanging Jesus from a tree, would let the world know that God was NOT with Jesus.

2,000 years later, and with billions of converts and counting, the Jesus movement has NOT been humiliated or stopped.  In fact, the Jewish leaders insistence on the crucifixion of Christ actually helped demonstrate the curse Jesus removed from sinners like you and me!  Galatians 3:10 says “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by the works of the law.”  Since we have all fallen short of God’s glorious standard, we are under a curse.  Galatians 3:13 continues, though, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.’”

The Jewish leaders were jealous of Jesus and wanted Him humiliated and killed.  Pilate wanted to save face and hang on to political power.  But our God is so sovereign that He can use the sinful, selfish decisions of others to accomplish His glorifying ends.

This Sunday, April 6 at Wildwood Community Church, we will be in part 4 of our “Trial to Triumph” sermon series as we look at John 18:28-40.  In these verses we will see Jesus standing trial before Pilate, and what that means for you and for me.  Hope to see you Sunday in our 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 services.  We will worship, pray, read Scripture, share the Lord’s Supper, and even hear the update on our Deep + Wide capital campaign.  Hope you see you there … and bring friends!

Trial to Triumph (part 3) Sermon Audio, Video, & Questions

On Sunday, March 30, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church, Care Pastor John Abernethy preached a sermon based on John 18:15-18, 25-27.  This message was part 3 of the “Trial to Triumph” Easter sermon series.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video from the message to listen to/watch, download or share.

Sermon Questions:

  1. Pray
  2. Read John 18:15-18, 25-27.
  3. Peter left everything to follow Jesus. He then spent 3 years observing (and participating in) the miracles and teachings of Jesus. List some of the truths about Jesus that he should have learned.
  4. Peter told Jesus he would go to prison and even to death with Him. Then Jesus told him that, instead, Peter would deny Him. How do you think Peter felt? Could it have influenced his actions in the Garden during Jesus’ arrest? [proving himself?] How would you have felt if Jesus told you that you would fail Him?
  5. When Peter followed Jesus into the courtyard and then denied Him, what should or could he have done differently?
  6. Read 1 Pet. 3:13-16 and 1 Pet. 5:5-9. Which commands from these verses stand out to you?
  7. Think of a time when you have “denied Christ…” Which point from these passages did you fail to live out?
  8. Read John 21:15-17 and summarize the passage. What is happening? What does Jesus want Peter to do?
  9. List some ways that the restoration of Peter encourages you in your life and faith.
  10. Read Acts 4:18-21. How has Peter changed since he denied Christ?
  11. Spurgeon says, “He perseveres in the falsehood he has spoken. He adds lie to lie and sinks deeper in the mire. Left to himself his course is downward…” What are some reasons people might continue to lie once they have started? What should they do instead?
  12. What is one particular application that you took away from this message?

To access these questions in pdf format click here.

 

To listen to message offline, click the link:

Trial tomb Triumph #3 3.30.25

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch online use YouTube:

 

Trial to Triumph (part 2) Sermon Audio, Video, & Questions

On Sunday, March 23, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church, Care Pastor John Abernethy preached a sermon based on John 18:12-14, 19-24 & Matthew 26:57-68, 27:1-2.  This message was part 2 of the “Trial to Triumph” Easter sermon series.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video from the message to listen to/watch, download or share.

Sermon Questions:

  1. Pray
  2. Read John 18:12-14, 19-24  &  Matt. 26:57-68, 27:1-2
  3. Like the Jewish leaders, some people have a mistaken or incomplete view of who Jesus is. What are some mistaken views of Jesus that you have heard? (For example: Jesus was a good, moral teacher but definitely not God.)
  4. Why do you think people hold that (or those) views? (Example: They haven’t read or studied what Jesus claimed.)
  5. C. S. Lewis said, “A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic…or else He would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse…But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
    What is the main point that Lewis is making? How might it help you as you share / discuss the Gospel message with others?
  6. What about you personally…where might you have a mistaken or incomplete view of who Jesus is or what He has done? What effect might that be having on you?
  7. What stood out to you most about Jesus’ trials?
  8. Jesus was bound for His trials. Spurgeon said Jesus was bound with our bonds instead of us being bound. What did Spurgeon mean?
  9. How does Jesus’ willingness and humility to endure these trials and go to the cross encourage you in your faith?
  10. What is one particular application that you took away from this message?

To access these questions in pdf format click here.

 

To listen to message offline, click the link:

Trial tomb Triumph #2 3.23.25

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch online use YouTube:

 

Trial to Triumph (part 1) Sermon Audio, Video, & Questions

On Sunday, March 16, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on John 18:1-11.  This message was part 1 of the “Trial to Triumph” Easter sermon series.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video from the message to listen to/watch, download or share.

Sermon Questions:

  1. Pray
  2. Read John 18:1-11
  3. What is an example of a big decision you have made in life that involved a lot of intentional steps to complete?  What is an example of something that has happened to you in life that was completely beyond your level of influence or control?
  4. In John 18 we see Jesus very intentionally moving toward the cross- facilitating His arrest by what He did NOT do.  In the message we talked about a number of things Jesus could have done that He did not do in the Garden of Gethsemane.  What stood out to you most about Jesus’ actions there?
  5. How does knowing that your salvation was God’s desire and will impact the way you view your place in God’s family?
  6. Jesus’ actions in the Garden of Gethsemane show His willingness to die in our place.  Of course, this is MOST OBVIOUS in the fact that Jesus died for our sins, but it is also evident in some of the smaller actions Jesus took on behalf of His followers in the Garden.  What are some of the ways you see Jesus putting others before Himself there?
  7. Have you trusted in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins?  If not, would you consider doing so today?  If you are a Christian, how does this passage today impact you to want to continue to follow Jesus and give Him your life?
  8. What stands out to you most from this message?  Any particular takeaway?

To access these questions in pdf format click here.

 

To listen to message offline, click the link:

Trial tomb Triumph #1. 3.16.25

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch online use YouTube:

 

Trial to Triumph (part 1) Sermon Preview

Have you ever accidentally purchased a car?  Ever unintentionally bought a house?  Ever mistakenly flew to Timbuktu, when you planned to drive to Noble?

Didn’t think so.

Why?  Well because in all of these scenarios, we have the ability and agency to effect the outcome … and many steps are involved.

To purchase a car you have to drive to a dealership, select the vehicle, negotiate the price, sign the contract, produce the funds, THEN you have bought the vehicle.  After that many decisions stacked together, it is not an accident but a process of your will.

To buy a house, you have to find the property, make an offer, schedule lots of inspections and tests, arrange financing or save the money in advance, THEN you have bought the house.  After 30-60 days of work, it is hard to call that a surprise purchase!

And with so many options on where someone might travel and how someone might travel there, no one mistakes their hatchback for an American Airlines flight!  You can’t trick someone into making that big of a vacation vexation.

Now, why do I go through these examples?  I am simply trying to point out that there are things we do in life that we do on purpose … then there are things that happen to us in life that we cannot stop.

I cannot control if a wildfire will burn my house down tonight.  I cannot control if hail will destroy my roof this spring.  I cannot control the day of my birth or the day of my death.  These things are above our pay grade!

Some things we seem to influence, while others are beyond our reach.  This is true for us as people because we are finite limited beings.

With this backdrop, I want us to turn to John 18:1-11 … the passage of Scripture we will be studying Sunday morning, March 16 at Wildwood Community Church in part 1 of the “Trial to Triumph” Easter series.  In this passage we see Jesus arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane and taken to a set of trials that ultimately would culminate at the cross.  Far from presenting Jesus as Someone stumbling His way into a tricky spot or being overcome by a superior force or freak accident, Jesus is the Sovereign in John’s account, demonstrating clearly that Jesus’ life was not taken from Him, but that He freely laid it down.  Jesus made so many intentional decisions that led Him from Heaven to Bethlehem to Galilee to Gethsemane to Calvary, that we must conclude that Jesus knew what He was “buying” during His earthly life.  His cross ransom was no surprise purchase.  And since Jesus is God, we are reminded that no force existed that could overcome Him … not the Romans, not the Jewish High Priests, not the Temple guard, not a betraying friend.  For Jesus to go to the cross, He needed to ALLOW IT TO HAPPEN … to lay down His life for the sheep.

And why?  Out of His love for us, and fidelity to His Father’s will, Jesus laid down His life for both God’s greatest glory and our greatest good.

For the next 6 weeks at Wildwood we will be walking with Jesus to the cross to see the triumph Jesus delivered for you and me through the tomb.  See you Sunday in part 1 in our 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 service … and bring friends!  This is a message we all need to hear.

March 2025 Baptism Sunday

On March 9, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church we celebrated the baptisms of 30 individuals. Below you will find the video from each of our 3 morning services.

Our next Baptism Sunday will be August 3, 2025. If you are interested in being baptized or have questions about baptism, please click here.

 

Video from 8:30 Service (baptisms only):

 

Video from 9:45 Service (entire service):

 

Video from 11:00 Service (baptisms only):

 

In the 8:30 service on March 9, 2025, I preached a sermon (due to time constraints with numbers of baptisms, the 8:30 service was the only service of the three on Sunday to include this sermon.) The message the  tenth  and  final  message  in the  Deep  + Wide  sermon  series.  The  audio  from  that message  is  included  below.

Audio from this message is found below:

Deep & Wide #10 3.9.25

 

Deep + Wide (part 9) Sermon Audio, Video, & Questions

On Sunday, March 2, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on Acts 16:1-3 & 2 Timothy 1:13-14, 2:2.  This message was part 9 of the “Deep + Wide” sermon series.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video from the message to listen to/watch, download or share.

Sermon Questions:

  1. Pray
  2. Read Acts 16:1-3, 2 Timothy 1:13-14, 2:2
  3. Have you ever participated in a relay before?  If so, share that experience with the group.  NOTE:  All of us are in the relay race of the faith!
  4. In Acts 16:1-3a, we see Paul invite Timothy to join him on his missionary journey.  This began a 15 year friendship and partnership in ministry (despite their 30 year age difference).  In what ways (both practical and strategic) do you think Paul made a good decision to include Timothy in his travels?
  5. Seeing how Timothy was impacted by the faith and discipleship of his mom and grandma, how are you inspired as a parent or grandparent today to point your kids/grandkids to Christ?
  6. Later in Paul’s life, he writes to him in 2 Timothy 1:13-14 and encourages him to “follow the pattern of sound words” that Paul had poured into him.  Timothy was to know the truth, but also to follow it.  Do you find yourself mostly mouthing the truth to the next generation or modeling it?
  7. What are some ways you can help pass the baton of faith to the next generation in the weeks age?
  8. Being For the Next Generation is a major part of our Deep+Wide campaign.  Have you considered being a part financially of the Deep+Wide campaign at Wildwood?  Find out more info and make your commitment at wildwoodchurch.org/build
  9. What stands out to you most from this message?  Any particular takeaway?

To access these questions in pdf format click here.

 

To listen to message offline, click the link:

Deep & Wide #9 3.2.25

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch online use YouTube:

 

Deep + Wide (part 9) Sermon Preview

In the spring of 1989, we had competed in eight track meets.  In the spring of 1989, we had come in second eight times.  Always the backup singer, and never the lead.  Always the groomsmen and never the groom … you get the picture.

Or do you?

If you didn’t follow the ninth grade track scene in the Frontier Conference up in Northeast Oklahoma in the late 1980s, you might have no idea what I am talking about.  OK, NONE OF YOU know what I am talking about … so let me explain.

I am referring to the Bartlesville Bruin ninth grade 2 mile relay team of 1989.  I ran the opening leg on that relay team.  We were good … just not as good as Jenks.  We hated Jenks.  They beat us every time.  We had run against them in every meet all season, always taking home the silver medal.  The final meet of the ninth grade season was held at Owasso High School, and Jenks would be there.  This was officially glory’s last shot for our ragamuffin runners.

After a season of training and a string of narrow defeats, we were ready and motivated.  We plastered the bus with handmade signs that said “Beat Jenks.”  The ride down was filled with all the motivation my walkman could deliver – I don’t remember what I was listening to, but I am guessing Jon Bon Jovi was singing it.  We were livin’ on a prayer …

By the time the race began, we were jacked up, and ready to roll.  I ran the first leg and by the end of my second lap, we were in a dead heat with the favored Trojans.  That’s when I handed the baton to my good friend (and team star) who took off like he was riding a motorcycle.  By the time he finished his 800 meters, we had a 100 meter lead.  Our third leg took the baton, and ran the race of his life.  By the time he handed the baton to our anchor leg, our lead had ballooned to 150 meters!  I am not exaggerating … we were celebrating, jumping around, and awaiting the coronation that soon would come: breaking the Jenks jinx and beating the Trojans when it mattered the most!

What happened next, I’ll never forget.  OUR STAR ran second, but THEIR STAR ran last … and over the final 800 meters, he was gaining ground fast.  With 100 meters left, we still had a 20 meter lead.  We couldn’t lose it, could we?  COULD WE?!?

Yes we could.  Jenks beat us by a hundredth of a second at the final tape.

Did I ever get over it?  Apparently not.

But the truth is, what happened to our anchor leg could have happened to any of us.  We all had a race to run, and we are only as good as whoever eventually is holding the baton.

Now, I want to stop talking about ninth grade track to make an important spiritual point.  There is a baton of truth that has been passed down through history from believer to believer since the time of Jesus.  This truth ran through the Roman Empire, across the Dark Ages, emerging from the time of the Reformation, spanning the Enlightenment, Modern and Post-modern thought.  This baton of truth has crossed oceans and ages and it now sits squarely in our hands.  What are we to do with it?

We are to run with perseverance the race marked out for us, guarding the good deposit that has been entrusted to us … but we are also to pass along this truth to the next generation.  While we wait for Christ’s return, we are in the process of passing on the baton of truth to those who follow us (today’s children and students).  May we run a life modeling the truth, and may we pass the baton to a generation that will run farther and faster with Jesus than we have.  After all, some day, the baton will be in their hands.

Let us not coast the last 2 laps of our life, but let us pour into the next generation the truth delivered to us.

At Wildwood, we talk about being “for the next generation following Jesus and living for His glory.”  This is not just a slogan or a motto, but it is a VALUE we live out day after day.  This Sunday in part 9 of our Deep + Wide sermon series, we will be looking at Acts 16:1-3, 2 Timothy 1:13-14, and 2 Timothy 2:2 to see Paul model baton passing to his child in the faith, Timothy.  Looking forward to seeing you Sunday in our 8:30, 9:45, and 11:00 service.  See you there … and bring friends!

 

Deep + Wide (part 8) Sermon Audio, Video, & Questions

On Sunday, February 23, 2025, at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on Acts 19:17-27.  This message was part 8 of the “Deep + Wide” sermon series.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video from the message to listen to/watch, download or share.

Sermon Questions:

  1. Pray
  2. Read Acts 19:17-27
  3. What are some things you have seen in life that greatly impacted communities where you lived?  Especially focus on things that had POSITIVE impacts on the places where you lived. 
  4. The impact of Paul’s ministry in Ephesus leads to a revival in that city.  What are some evidences of revival (or “vival” … as this was the moment of BEGINNING their relationship with Jesus) that you see from Ephesians who are turning to Jesus?
  5. Are there things you need to confess to the Lord today?  Actions/things you need to walk away from permanently as you follow the Lord?
  6. The revival in Ephesus is felt by the local merchants who see their idol making business disrupted by people’s new found faith in Jesus.  What are some ways in which our community might be impacted as the Gospel grows in the hearts and lives of people?
  7. If the key to transforming a city is Jesus growing the hearts of His people, who might you share Jesus with in our city this week?  How might you follow Jesus more closely in your behavior this week?
  8. Being For the Community flows through the local church.  Have you considered being a part of the Deep+Wide campaign at Wildwood?  Find out more info at wildwoodchurch.org/build
  9. What stands out to you most from this message?  Any particular takeaway?

To access these questions in pdf format click here.

 

To listen to message offline, click the link:

Deep & Wide #8 2.23.25

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch online use YouTube: