Living as Citizens of the Land Called Gospel | Week 3 | In this week’s sermon, Darrell examines how Paul suddenly goes from evangelistic success to being falsely accused and awaiting trial for his life in a Roman prison. Frustration, bewilderment and despair would be normal reactions to such a fall from grace, but instead, Paul is able to rejoice even in the face of suffering and death. How is this possible? Darrell unpacks how God used what happened to Paul, through Paul and in Paul to show how God uses all things to further his kingdom both in the world and in our lives. We learn how and why we can therefore face adversity, and tell the world why we want to go on living in Christ.

Living as Citizens of the Land Called Gospel | Week 2 | In this sermon, Darrell delves into the underlying reason for Paul’s joy as expressed in the opening chapter of his letter to the church at Philippi. Despite his own imprisonment and news of conflict within the church, Paul is anything but discouraged or fearful. His unwavering confidence in the surety of God finishing the work that God started undergirds his joy and fuels his love and affection for the Philippians. Fully captivated by the gospel of Jesus Christ and fully convinced of God’s power to bring the “good work” that He began in his people to completion, Paul instructs his listeners to live boldly in light of the good news of Christ's salvation and the certainty of God’s activity. For God only begins what He intends to perfect.

Christmas is the season to awaken wonder, whether for the first time or for the fiftieth time. It is the most wonderful time of the year because of the most wonderful Story ever told: that a baby would be born of a virgin, fully God and fully man, and in His coming, would save the world. We enter into the Story with wonder—surprise, unexpected, and inexplicable wonder that marvels at the mystery of God with us.

This episode is Week 6 of a 6-month series on the Sermon on the Mount that Darrell preached in 1995. The text discusses the fourth Beatitude, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." Darrell’s key insight is that righteousness is not about rule-following, but about restoring right relationships - with God, with others, and with ourselves. Sin has distorted our natural longing for this kind of righteousness. But Jesus comes to transform our deepest desires, satisfying the hunger and thirst of those who crave a life of relational wholeness and integrity. Darrell invites us to align our appetites with God's own passion for a world made right.

This sermon represents Week 5 of a 6-month series on the Sermon on the Mount that Darrell preached in 1995. The text discusses the third Beatitude, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." Darrell explains that meekness is not very well understood and that it is a rich quality of trusting in God. The meek know that the old order is passing away and the new order of God's kingdom is coming, so they do not need to be worried about those who seem to be succeeding on the world’s terms. The meek will inherit the earth, not just in the end, but also in the present, as they are free to enjoy God's creation without the need to constantly acquire and control.

In this sermon, Darrell’s focus is on this Beatitude: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” This beatitude suggests that mourning is a mark of the gospelized. Meeting Jesus forces us to face our sin, reveals the brokenness of the world, and connects us to the heart of God, who also grieves over the pain and suffering. Darrell emphasizes that though this mourning may be painful, it leads to comfort and strength from the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, who reminds us of God's forgiveness, the ultimate triumph of the kingdom, and the joy that is to come.

In this sermon, Darrell examines the importance of the first sentence of the Beatitudes, "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." He claims that these words set the tone for the entire sermon and suggests that they actually ought to be read before and after every single section of the Sermon on the Mount. Darrell explains that being "poor in spirit" is so foundational because it describes those who recognize their spiritual poverty and dependence on God. Darrell unpacks how the poor in spirit are those who know their need for God and how it is only those who know this need who will inherit the kingdom.

In this sermon on Matthew 5:3–12, Darrell unpacks the Beatitudes, the words with which Jesus opens his famous Sermon on the Mount. Darrell provides some important contextual notes that help us understand the Book of Matthew as a whole and the significance of what Jesus is doing in talking about the kind of people who are “blessed.” Darrell also gives a greater understanding of the important word “blessed” and comes up with “right side up” - those in the kingdom are “right side up” when it comes to how God sees things. He concludes by inviting us to reflect on which of the Beatitudes we might need to pay attention to in our journey of discipleship.