Ada Presbyterian Church Pulpit Podcast

Fortitude - The Lost Art of Virtue

We tend to think of courage as one of those virtues for especially brave people--soldiers marching into battle or firefighters rushing into a burning home.  But courage is needed for living life each day.  Fear often holds us back from the actions we know we should do, and fortitude is the virtue that leads us into action and helps us stay the course. Join us as we continue our series on virtue for Lent.

Prudence - Lost Art of Virtue Series

Prudence might sound like the name of a quiet girl drinking tea in a parlor in Victorian England, but prudence is just an older word for something we all desperately need: wisdom.  We need wisdom to see the best course of action to take in life.  Wisdom doesn't just drop from the sky, but it's something we work towards over the course of a lifetime.  Join us today as we continue our series on virtue.

Intro - Lost Art of Virtue Series

Join us for a series on the virtues of the Christian life during the season of Lent.  Our passage today is 2 Peter 1:3-11, where Peter tells us to "make every effort to supplement our faith with virtue" (ESV) Virtue may not be a word you hear every day, but one way to think of virtue is that virtues are good moral habits that directs us to a life that is well-pleasing to God, to others, and to ourselves.  Join us each of the Sundays of Lent as we explore the classic virtues:  prudence, fortitude, temperance, justice, faith, hope, and love.

Acts 18 - The Christians at Antioch

Churches occasionally get some bad press, but the early church received good press in the city of Antioch, the place where they were first given the name "Christians."  Join us today as we look at the reasons why this church got noticed for all the right reasons.

Acts 17 - Peter and Cornelius

It's easy to make the mistake of thinking that only "rough" people need a savior, only people like Saul when he goes on the attack in Acts 9.  But turning into chapter 10, we learn that Cornelius, an all around "good guy," also needs a savior.  Join us today as we look at how God graciously hears Cornelius' prayer and sends a savior to him by way of Peter's preaching the gospel.  Along the way, Peter too undergoes a conversion to a new point of view, understanding now that the gospel isn't limited to one people group, but includes people from all nations.

Acts 16 - Road to Damascus

The Road to Damascus is one of those foundational stories in the Bible, showing us God's grace and his power to change people.  It also points us to the fact that there is nobody so far gone as to be out of reach of God's mercy and forgiveness.  Join us as for today's message as we walk with Paul on the Road to Damascus.

Acts 15 - Bought and Sold

Acts Chapter 8 introduces us to one of the more interesting characters in the New Testament - Simon the Magician.  Legends and myths have grown around the man, and in today's message we'll see how his wrong-headed desire to purchase the Holy Spirit still pops up today.  We'll also examine one of the more over-looked aspects of this passage--the Holy Spirit's delay in coming to Samaria.

Acts 14 - From Sorrow to Joy

We return to our series on Acts today after the Advent and Christmas break, and we find ourselves in a transitional chapter (8) in the book.  A great persecution breaks out against the church, scattering them to the surrounding regions.  It's a great shock to the early believers, but at the same time, they are scattered to the very places Jesus said they would be his witnesses: to Judea and Samaria (1:8).  Join us this week as we see the resilience of the early church in a trying time.

Acts 13 - Stephen's Last Stand

Stephen is the first Christian martyr, and he's killed for what he says in his wide-ranging speech in Acts 7.  His speech tells the story of God's saving work throughout different chapters of human history:  Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, and Solomon. The story culminates in the coming of Jesus Christ.  Join us for today's message to see how this story informs on our experiences as Christians living in this present age.

Acts 12 - The Daily Distribution

The early church practiced radical generosity-- people gave not just out of their weekly income, but they even sold hard assets like homes and land in order to support the needy.  But with all this giving comes new problems:  how is the money to be managed?  Who should be on the receiving end of all this giving?  What kind of people ought to be put in charge of it?  How do we handle complaints about giving when they arise?  All of these questions and more are before us in today's message.