November 9, 2025

This sermon explores Paul and Barnabas's first missionary journey as recorded in Acts 14, emphasizing that carrying the name of a crucified Savior in a lost world will inevitably bring hardship and suffering. The message highlights how Paul was stoned in Lystra yet courageously returned to the city and then backtracked through all the towns where he faced persecution—not to take the easy route home, but to strengthen, encourage, and establish leadership in the newly formed churches. The sermon challenges believers to understand that building Christ's church is not an easy road but requires strength, courage, and complete dependence on the Holy Spirit. It calls Christians to move beyond a consumer mentality of faith and embrace the difficult work of kingdom building, commending all efforts to God's grace rather than human strength.