TRC Chattanooga Podcast

St. John begins his Gospel with a prologue. Riding on top of, and magnifying, themes found in his Gospel, this prologue makes devestating points against the Hellenistic world. The Word was in the beginning, and he was with God. We also learn that the Word tabernacled among us. But what does all of it mean? If the Word/Logos is something foundational to all of existence, understanding that the same Word came and dwelled among us is critically important. But the real center of John’s prologue is in verse 12. We need to know the rights we have been given by God. Listen as Elder Wes Keene explains how John structured his prologue and what it means to us in this week’s sermon at TRC Chattanooga.

St. Paul tells us in Galatians 4 that we are no longer slaves but sons. That is very good news indeed. But there must be more to the story, because everywhere Paul refers to himself as a slave, or a servant. By examining other writings from Paul, we begin to get a clearer sense of how exactly Jesus Christ has saved us, and we can make sense of Paul’s good news in Galatians 4:7. We are free. We are free to live as sons of God. Listen as Elder Wes Keene delivers this week’s exhortation at TRC Chattanooga.

Merry Christmas from the saints of Trinity Reformed Church to all those listening to this year's Christmas homily. God sent his Son to become a citizen of our earthly kingdom, so that we might become citizens of his heavenly kingdom. The story of the birth of baby King Jesus has been told time and time again over two millennia and this year was no different on December 25th. Listen and remember that first Christmas morning as Elder Glenn Jones gives this year's Christmas Day message to the members of TRC Chattanooga.
 

Isaiah prophesied about the coming birth of Christ long before it actually happened. Then when it did happen, Matthew's Gospel referenced Isaiah's writing. For about 2,000 years, we were all pretty happy with that explanation. Until some historical critical theologians got ahold of it and made a mess of things. What should we know about the prophecy concerning Jesus Christ's incarnation? Listen as Rev. David Beckmann preaches at TRC Chattanooga.

The fourth week of Advent has the theme of Love. As Christians, there is no greater example of love than God himself in Christ Jesus. Listen as Elder Glenn Jones exhorts the congregation from John's gospel and first epistle to believe the full scope of God's love for the world and how it will one day make the whole world Christian.

We’ve all had people and institutions who have let us down over the years, or at least failed to meet our expectations. When two disciples are sent by John the Baptist to Jesus to ask him whether he is the coming one, Jesus asks them to observe what they see around them and draw their own conclusions. Did John the Baptist have his own Doubting Thomas moment? Or does it really matter, anyway? What is Holy Scripture attempting to tell us through Matthew 11? Listen as Elder Wes Keene preaches this week’s sermon at TRC Chattanooga.

The theme for the third Sunday in Advent is: joy. Paul tells us in both Philippians and Romans that Christians ought to be joyful…always. This is the expected biblical disposition of the Christian’s emotional and mental state. The problem is that we’re not always joyful. The world loads us down, especially in Advent, when calendars get more full than we might like. But if Christians have a God who saved them, then Christians must rejoice…always. Listen as Elder Wes Keene exhorts the congregation at TRC Chattanooga.

What exactly was John the Baptist's ministry all about? What kind of a man was he? The message that a prophet of God brings us isn't necessarily always what we want to hear - it might not even be pleasant. John was not a soft man. He was desert-tested, and he thundered! Listen as Pastor James Durham delivers this week's sermon at TRC Chattanooga.

The theme for the second week of Advent is peace. In Isaiah 53:5, we learn that Christ's chastisement brought us peace. It was our sin that brought us into a state of war with God. The only way that peace could be brokered was by the suffering and death of the only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ. Through his stripes, we are fully reconciled to God. Listen as Elder Wes Keene exhorts the congregation at TRC Chattanooga.

A new Church year is upon us and that means that we must prepare our minds and hearts to celebrate and remember how Christ came into the world at Christmas. But before we get to the Christmas season, it is always helpful to gain a deeper understanding of the season of Advent as a whole, especially in how Jesus' coming into the world is a unified whole - Christ has come, Christ is coming, and Christ will come again. Listen as Elder Glenn Jones explains why we follow the Church calendar and what that means for us as we start a new Church year with the season of Advent. In the middle, there is also a brief excursus on Matthew 24 and what Jesus means about being 'left behind.'