In Sermons: showing 1-15 of 23

Focused On One Thing

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Aug 22, 2023

In a world full of distraction, it is more important than ever to refocus our attention and worship on what truly matters: Christ.

TOO BUSY TO ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING How many of you have ever had a day where you had so much to do, that you just couldn’t get anything done? As soon as you’d start a task, something else – just as essential – would grab your attention, and then just as you got the ball rolling, a third thing would ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 56:1-8, Matthew 11:15-19

Denomination: Nazarene

Funeral Sermon For The Loss Of A Young Child: "the Smallest Life, A Miracle" Series

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Jun 23, 2023

The loss of a young child or infant is one of the most difficult experiences for any family to process. This funeral sermon is meant to communicate the inherent beauty and worth of even the most fleeting of lives.

Words alone cannot comfort a grieving heart, because words cannot replace the ones we love. Even the most beautiful words are little things, here for only a moment, fleeting and often unnoticed. We live in a world filled with words, some shouted from rooftops and some whispered in a quiet room, yet ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 139:7-18, Revelation 21:1-5

Denomination: Nazarene

The Rich Man's Choice

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Oct 16, 2021

At some point we all have to make the same choice the Rich Man was faced with when he encountered Jesus in Mark 10:17-31. Will you be willing to give everything up to follow Him?

SPELUNKING How many here are familiar with the practice of exploring caves or spelunking? How many of you have ever gone spelunking? How many enjoy just saying the word spelunking? It’s like the sound water makes when it drops in a bucket… spelunking. It’s a fun word! And it’s an even more fun ...read more

Scripture: Mark 10:17-31, Exodus 20:2-17, 1 Corinthians 3:12-15

Denomination: Nazarene

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Mar 29, 2020

Evangelical Christianity often struggles with the words of James 2 when he declares things like "faith without works is dead," and "Abraham was justified by works." This sermon reconciles his meaning to that of Paul and demonstrates genuine faith is always expressed in works.

GHOSTS IN A CULTURE'S PAST During my Sophomore year of college at Wartburg College – a Lutheran school in Northeast Iowa, I had the privilege of taking a class which took us to Germany for a month to tour sites associated with the Reformation, as we learned about the history of the movement ...read more

Scripture: James 2:14-26, Romans 4:1-5, Ephesians 2:8-10, Hebrews 11:8-12

Denomination: Nazarene

The Discipline Of Fasting

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Feb 23, 2020

Ezra the scribe knew his people needed to prepare their hearts for the difficult and dangerous journey ahead. In this sermon we look at why we as the church are called to fast and pray together, especially during the season of Lent.

A FAMILY ON THE MOVE For our family, there is rarely any experience more stressful than preparing for a trip back to Iowa to visit our parents. The kids are always excited about the prospect of staying in motels, of visiting with Grandma and Grandpa, of going out to eat at restaurants, and of ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 8:21-23, Nehemiah 1:1-6, Jonah 3:5-10, Joel 2:12-13, Psalm 35:11-14, Psalm 69:9-12, Matthew 6:16-18, Acts 13:2-3  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Nazarene

The King Returns

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Jan 23, 2020

Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem illustrates for us the upside down nature of the Kingdom of God.

THE PRESIDENT'S MOTORCADE Whenever the President of the United States visits a city, a well-oiled security machine begins to roll into high gear as White House staff, Secret Service personnel, and local and state law enforcement scramble to make sure everything is in place long before the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 19:28-40, Psalm 118:25-26, Zechariah 9:9

Denomination: Nazarene

Planks And Specks

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Jan 23, 2020

"Don't judge me!" is often the cry of our culture. But what did Jesus really mean by these famous words? Read on and find out!

DO NOT JUDGE, AND YOU WILL NOT BE JUDGED As we travel through the gospel of Luke together, I wanted to backtrack this week to revisit the heart of Jesus’ teaching in ch. 6. This passage is one most of us have heard before. And as clear cut as it may seem, I found I really struggled this week with ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:37-45

Denomination: Nazarene

The Significance Of The Incarnation

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Dec 24, 2019

A short Christmas Eve Devotion written to explain the significance of the Word becoming flesh for us.

THE TECHNOLOGICAL DRIVE FOR PERFECTION Ever since I was a little boy, I have always been fascinated by the steady march forward of technology. I used to love going to the school library and picking up a copy of Popular Mechanics to see what new gadget, or computer, or AI system was being ...read more

Scripture: John 1:1-18, Titus 2:11-13, 1 John 4:16-19, Genesis 1:27

Denomination: Nazarene

What Does "morality" Even Mean?

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Nov 24, 2019

How do we define morality in an increasingly relativistic, materialistic world? When we realize our inherent blind spots, we find that morality must be rooted in something outside of ourselves, and only the example of the incarnate Christ is firm foundation enough for discerning right from wrong.

A CLASH OF WORLDVIEWS In our passage this morning, Paul is speaking to the faithful in the church at the Greek colony of Colossae, now in modern day Turkey. Many of these believers came from a pagan background. They didn’t grow up with the benefit of stories about God’s providence or saving work ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 1:9-23, 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

Denomination: Nazarene

Getting Your Feet Wet

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Aug 5, 2019

In healing the Syrian Army commander Namaan through the prophet Elijah, God shows us some surprising things about His grace and the importance of stepping out in faith and "getting our feet wet."

A GOOD SOLDIER, BUT LEPROUS Our story this morning is one of the most remarkable in the Old Testament, not least because it defies all of our expectations of how God deals with his people and their enemies. And make no mistake, that’s exactly who the central figure in this morning’s story is: ...read more

Denomination: Nazarene

Resiliency Rooted In Hope

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Aug 1, 2019

So many people feel more alone and alienated than ever before. In this sermon I discuss the grace of Christ which enables hope in the midst of struggle, and the practical tools necessary to build resilience in the face of hardship.

A RIDE THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS This weekend, as my family and I headed back through the mountains from District Assembly in Denver, we happened to pass a bike race with athletes peddling through the steep twists and turns leading to Wolf Creek Pass and I couldn’t help but marvel at the determination ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:1-5

Denomination: Nazarene

The Wonder Of The Risen Lord

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Apr 29, 2019

Experience the wonder and awe the women must have felt on finding the empty tomb this Easter morning.

In everyday speech, we tend to use words like “wonderful” and “awesome” quite a bit. “That cake was wonderful.” “I got out of work early today and had an awesome afternoon.” “What a wonderful service.” Usually we just mean something was nice, or convenient, or was pleasing to the senses. But I ...read more

Scripture: Mark 16:1-8

Denomination: Nazarene

Captives Free

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Apr 29, 2019

Just as God was faithful to Israel by returning them to the land and restoring the nation when all hope had seemed lost; so today, Christ is faithful to transform ashes into a beautiful headdress, a spirit of mourning into the oil of gladness, and a faint spirit into a garment of praise.

A PEOPLE IN EXILE I want you to close your eyes for a moment. Now imagine with me that you are an Israelite during the Babylonian Exile around 2,500 years ago, standing on the bank of the Euphrates River. You look downstream as two priests and a small crowd gather to perform an “Opening of the ...read more

Denomination: Nazarene

A New Creation

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Apr 11, 2019

We are being called to see the world through new eyes, but in order to do that, we need to be transformed by Christ. Once we witness His power firsthand, only then are we truly able to go out as ambassadors for Him.

OPENING STORY If any of you have gotten the chance to sift through old pictures on my Facebook page, you’ve probably noticed that in most of the older pictures I used to wear glasses. Well, I used to be slightly near-sighted. And when I mean slightly, I mean it was like 20/400! If I took my glasses ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Denomination: Nazarene

Finding Rest Among The Crowds

Contributed by Ian Hyde on Apr 10, 2019

We often pride ourselves in our work ethic, but we are addicted to work! This sermon takes a look at our need to find rest in the midst of a chaotic world and a myriad of responsibilities; using Jesus' practice of finding rest as our example.

IMMEDIACY IN MARK When we read the Gospel of Mark, we read a story moving at breakneck speed. Mark is the shortest gospel, and in it we don’t find a genealogy, or narratives from his childhood, or even much of a prelude before Jesus is baptized. And once he is baptized, it seems like he is ...read more

Scripture: Mark 6:30-34, Mark 6:53-56

Denomination: Nazarene