Grace Church Elk Grove

This week our sermon will take on the shape of C.S. Lewis’ book, “The Screwtape Letters.” He wrote that book from the perspective of a demon named Screwtape giving instruction to his nephew about how to deceive and derail his “subject.” It is a fascinating read about the nature of the opposition we face, as is the passage before us this week - Ezra 4. When we consider the principles in play, we will see how some things never change. God’s Word is timeless, and clearly instructive for us today.

This week we look at Ezra 3, where Israel “makes a beginning” in rebuilding the temple. This passage is filled with ancient details of Israel’s worship, and these same details are mapped across the eons to our present situation. God’s Word is evergreen in its application because its Author is timeless. There is vital wisdom here for the beginning we are making today.Listen to this episode from Pastor Jed’s sermon on December 7th, 2025 to learn more.

The chapter before us this week is full of the names of real people, with real stories, who took great risk to continue the work of God in the world. At a minimum, we honor them, but we will also learn from them. Listen to this episode from Pastor Jed’s sermon on November 30th, 2025 to learn more.

This week we begin our next series, on the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. We think God is leading us into a time of our own rebuilding, which is what Ezra is all about. So I invite you to simply read the book of Ezra. Familiarize yourself with it. And listen to this episode from Pastor Jed’s sermon on November 23rd, to learn more.

Failure is something we all can understand. I can fail to play the right chord during a worship song on Sunday morning, and I can forget to stop my car at a red light. Both are failures, but the scope of the failure is vastly different. The failure I am referring to is a spiritual one. The failure I am referring to is a spiritual one. And it is that kind of failure that produces individuals who, according to the Apostle Paul, are “enemies of the cross” (Phil. 3:18-19) as well as weak, tempted, and frightened Christians who live spiritual lives of failure. Listen to this episode from Pastor Mike’s sermon on November 16th, 2025 to learn more.