The Story Retold | The Gospel of Mark
Mark’s Gospel is a story in motion — fast-paced, vivid, and full of urgency. In this Story Retold session, Pastor Mark explores how Mark presents Jesus as both the Son of God and the Son of Man: the promised Messiah who brings God’s kingdom through suffering and service.
You’ll see how the structure of the book points us toward the cross, why the ending is intentionally abrupt, and how Mark’s message challenges us to follow Christ with courage and immediacy.
Life in the Covenant | Psalm 103:15–18 & Romans 8:28–39 | Unfading Love in a Fading World
In a world where memories fade and everything we build eventually wears out, God’s covenant love endures forever.
This message from Pastor Mark Groen reminds us that life in the covenant is not about our grip on God, but about His unbreakable grip on us. From the frailty of life described in Psalm 103 to the assurance of salvation in Romans 8, we see the power of an everlasting promise — a love that cannot fade or fail.
The Covenant Sign | Genesis 17:1-14 & Colossians 2:11-12 | Marked by Grace
In this fifth message of our Everlasting Covenant series, Pastor Mark Groen preaches from Genesis 17:1–14 and Colossians 2:11–12, exploring how God marked His people under the old covenant and how that sign is fulfilled in Christ.
God commanded Abraham to circumcise his household as a visible sign that they belonged to Him. This sign pointed forward to the greater reality of salvation in Jesus Christ, who cuts away the sin of His people through His life, death, and resurrection.
The Covenant Community | Deuteronomy 7:6-9 & Hebrews 8:6-13 | United in Christ, Secured by Promise
When we think of memberships today, we often think of cards in our wallet or apps on our phone—things that can expire if we miss a payment or fail to keep up. But God’s covenant community is entirely different. Belonging to Him isn’t a subscription we manage or a benefit program we maintain. It is His gracious claim on us through Christ, an eternal promise written on our hearts.
The Story Retold | The Gospel of Matthew
In this Story Retold class session, we take a big-picture look at the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew writes to show us Jesus as the promised King—fulfilling God’s covenant promises to Abraham and David, teaching with authority like a new Moses, and sending His disciples to the nations. This overview is designed to help you read Matthew with the main themes “playing in the background.”
The Covenant Fulfilled | Jeremiah 31:31-34 & Luke 22:14-23 | New Hearts, New Covenant
God’s promise of a new covenant goes deeper than new rules—it gives new hearts. In Jesus, the covenant is sealed by His blood, ending the cycle of repeated sacrifices and securing a once-for-all forgiveness. Because of Christ, God declares: “I will remember their sin no more.” This message connects Jeremiah’s promise to the Lord’s Supper and invites us to live with assurance, freedom, and holiness.
The Covenant Confirmed | Exodus 24:3–8 & Hebrews 9:11–22 | 5 Devotions on God’s Covenant Secured in Christ
This week’s sermon, The Covenant Confirmed, explored Exodus 24:3–8 and Hebrews 9:11–22, showing how God seals His covenant with His people through His Word, through blood, and ultimately through Christ, the better Mediator. If you haven’t already, you can watch or read the full sermon here.
The Covenant Confirmed | Exodus 24:3-8 & Hebrews 9:11-22 | The Sure Hope of Salvation in Christ's Blood
When Israel stood at Sinai, they didn’t just hear God’s covenant—they embraced it, and it was sealed with blood. In this message, Pastor Mark shows how that moment points us to something greater: the covenant fulfilled through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Just as Moses confirmed the covenant with sacrifice, Christ has confirmed and completed the covenant with His own precious blood. In Him, our salvation is sure and secure.
The Covenant Maker | Genesis 15:1-20 | 5 Devotions on God’s Faithful Promises
Our sermon this week, The Covenant Maker from Genesis 15:1–20, reminds us that God is both the maker and keeper of His promises. To help you reflect further, we’ve prepared five days of devotions that flow out of the message. Each day includes a passage of Scripture, a short reflection, questions for personal or family use, and a prayer.
These devotions are designed to guide you deeper into God’s Word throughout the week and to encourage you to rest in His covenant faithfulness, fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Whether you use them on your own or around the table with your family, may they point you again to the God who calls, saves, and keeps His people.
The Covenant Maker | Genesis 15:1-20 | Grace Secured By His Word
Covenant is more than an old-fashioned word—it’s the backbone of God’s plan of redemption. In Genesis 15, God initiates, guarantees, and seals his promise to Abraham in a dramatic covenant ritual. This passage points us beyond Abraham’s story to the gospel of Jesus Christ, who bore the covenant curse and secured salvation for his people. In this sermon, Pastor Mark reminds us that our reward is God himself and that his promises are sure, even when our faith wavers.
Kept in God’s Love | Jude 17-25 | Strength to Contend and Confidence to Endure
In the closing verses of Jude (17–25), believers are called to take the warnings of the apostles seriously, to remain steadfast in the love of God, and to rely on His power to keep us from stumbling. In this sermon, Kept in God’s Love, Pastor Mark reminds us that the Christian life is not lived by grand gestures but in daily faithfulness—holding fast to God’s Word, building ourselves up in prayer, showing mercy to others, and trusting that the God who has saved us will also keep us to the very end.
Contend for the Faith | Jude 1-16 | 5 Devotions on Guarding and Passing on the Gospel
These five devotions flow out of our recent sermon on Jude 1–16, Contend for the Faith. In that message, we considered Jude’s urgent call to guard the gospel from distortion and to pass it on as our greatest legacy. If you missed the sermon or would like to listen again, you can find it here: Contend for the Faith | Jude 1–16.
Use these short daily readings and prayers to reflect more deeply on God’s Word and to apply the truths of Jude to your walk with Christ.
Contend for the Faith | Jude 1-16 | Holding Fast to the Faith That Saves
The little letter of Jude begins with warmth but quickly takes a serious turn. False teaching had crept into the church, and Jude calls believers to contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints. In this sermon on Jude 1–16, we see why the gospel must be guarded, how error slips in unnoticed, and how the church must treasure and pass on the faith as its greatest legacy.
Grace for the Battle | 1 Peter 5:1-14 | Standing Firm in the Living Hope of Christ
The final chapter of 1 Peter is both realistic and hope-filled. In Grace for the Battle, we hear Peter’s final exhortations: shepherd God’s people with care, walk in humility, resist the enemy, and rest in God’s grace. He reminds us that after we have suffered a little while, the God of all grace will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish us. This is the Living Hope we’ve explored all summer—a hope that cannot be drowned by storms, devoured by the enemy, or destroyed by death.
Grace for the Battle | 1 Peter 5:1-14 | 5 Devotions on Living with Confidence in God’s Care
In the closing chapter of 1 Peter, we find a powerful reminder that the Christian life is both a battle and a journey under the care of the Chief Shepherd. These five devotions flow out of the truths in 1 Peter 5:1–14, where Peter calls leaders to shepherd God’s flock faithfully, the church to walk in humility and trust, and all believers to stand firm against the enemy. Along the way, we’re assured that “after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace… will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”
Whether you’re facing personal trials, spiritual opposition, or the daily pressures of life, these reflections are designed to help you live with confidence in God’s care.
Faith in the Fire | 1 Peter 4:12–19 | 5 Devotions on Trusting God Through Trials
When Peter wrote to suffering Christians in the first century, he didn’t offer them a way around their trials. Instead, he pointed them to a faithful God who walks with His people through the fire. In 1 Peter 4:12–19, we are reminded that trials are not strange detours in the Christian life—they are part of God’s refining work, preparing us for the glory to come.
Faith in the Fire | 1 Peter 4:12–19 | Finding Joy When Faith Is Tested
When trials come, we often look for an escape. But in this passage, Peter calls us to something far greater—to rejoice in suffering because it unites us with Christ and strengthens our witness to a watching world. In this message, we see how believers can endure hardship with hope, entrust their lives to a faithful Creator, and live boldly for the glory of God.
Living on Purpose | 1 Peter 4:1-11 | 5 Devotions on Christian Living
These five devotionals build on the message of 1 Peter 4:1–11, where we’re called to live differently because of what Christ has done. Christian living isn’t aimless—it’s shaped by the gospel, rooted in eternity, and directed toward the glory of God. Whether you're walking through difficulty, resisting temptation, or seeking to love and serve well, these short reflections will help you live with purpose each day.
Living On Purpose | 1 Peter 4:1-11 | Living with Eternity in View
In 1 Peter 4:1–11, Peter calls believers to live with purpose, rejecting the ways of the world and embracing a gospel-shaped life. In this sermon, Pastor Mark encourages us to live intentionally—keeping eternity in view and glorifying God through love, service, and holiness.
Reflect more deeply with our companion devotional series: https://edgertonfrc.org/blog/living-on-purpose-devotions