Sermon Archive

(NOTE: To listen to lessons from a variety of great speakers, visit Wes’ other website featuring audio from the campus ministry workshop annually held at Harding University: Campus Ministry United Audio)

Sermons by Wes Woodell

01/01/12: “Living Under the Word of God” (29:33) PowerPoint

What does it mean to live “under” the word of God? This lesson explores the answer to that question and outlines practical suggestions toward living biblically.

06/26/11: “Kingdom Come pt. 2″ (37:17) PowerPoint

A lesson based upon Acts 2 discussing how the events recorded there fulfill God’s Old Testament promises of the coming kingdom of God.

06/19/11: “Kingdom Come pt. 1″ (45:23) PowerPoint

A lesson based upon Acts 1:1-11 explaining how the Old Testament confused early Christ followers into misunderstanding the coming kingdom of God.

05/15/11: “Committed to the King” (14:50) PowerPoint

A short devotional based on 2 Samuel 23:15-17 – a story about three of David’s Mighty Men who were seriously devoted to their king.

05/08/11: “The Principle of the Path” (26:20) PowerPoint

How do you get from where you are in life to where you want to be? Direction, not intention, determines your destination. Lesson inspired by The Principle of the Path by Andy Stanley.

03/13/11: “Women in the Assembly pt. 2 – 1 Timothy 2:11-15″ (45:15) PowerPoint; Bibliography

A lesson outlining various views surrounding the controversial passage 1 Timothy 2:11-15. Presented as part of the Hot Talks series at Lake Merced Church of Christ in San Francisco.

02/13/11: “I Am Jonah: Finding Ourselves in Jonah 1″ (29:25) PowerPoint

A lesson on loving your enemies from Jonah chapter 1, along with an explanation for why Jonah so hated the Assyrians – one of the most brutal and sadistic nations in history.

01/23/11: “Women in the Assembly pt. 1 – 1 Corinthians 14″ (41:02) PowerPoint

A lesson covering 1 Corinthians 14:33-35. Presented as part of the Hot Talks series at Lake Merced Church of Christ in San Francisco.

01/02/11: “Core Essentials: Mission & Transformation” (30:05) PowerPoint

A lesson exploring an answer to the question, “What does God expect of me after I give my life to Christ?” Presented as part of the ‘Core Essentials’ series at Lake Merced Church of Christ.

12/12/10: “Core Essentials: Repentance, Baptism, & Lifelong Commitment to Christ” (35:03) PowerPoint; Video

A lesson exploring the answer to the question: How does a person become a Christian? Presented as part of the ‘Core Essentials’ series for Lake Merced Church of Christ.

11/21/10: “Core Essentials: The Bible is the Word of God” (31:08) PowerPoint

A lesson exploring answers to the question, “Why do we believe the Bible is the word of God?” Presented as part of the ‘Core Essentials’ series for Lake Merced Church of Christ.

11/07/10: “One Purpose: Developing Mature Disciples of Christ” (26:00) PowerPoint; Video

A lesson on two important aspects of becoming mature in Christ. Presented as part of Lake Merced Church’s ‘One Purpose’ series.

10/24/10: “One Purpose: Declaring the Good News of Jesus” (25:53) PowerPoint; Video

A lesson on everyday evangelism. Part of Lake Merced Church’s ‘One Purpose’ series.

09/26/10: “Learning to Love One Another” (38:05) PowerPoint

A lesson that examines the New Testament’s “one another” passages and asks the question: what does it look like to practically carry out Christ’s command to “love one another”?

Loco in Cocoa 2010 – Cocoa Beach, FL

• 09/17/10: “Maximum Impact: Defining Moments” (50:42) PowerPoint; Video 1
• 09/18/10: “Maximum Impact: Greatest Commands pt. 1″ (64:31) PowerPoint; Handout; Video 2
• 09/18/10: “Maximum Impact: Greatest Commands pt. 2″ (73:45) PowerPoint

09/12/10: “Building Bridges by Burning Korans? A Biblical Approach to Sharing Jesus in a Pluralistic World” (29:39) PowerPoint

An exegetical lesson covering Acts 17:15-34 answering this question: How should followers of Christ interact with adherents of other religions?

08/29/10: “Lessons From Elisha: A Double Portion & Godly Ambition” (28:04) PowerPoint

An exegetical lesson on 1 Kings 19:19-21 and 2 Kings 2:1-15, and the value of God-Centered ambition.

08/01/10: “Lessons on What NOT to Do From the Life of Saul” (30:49) PowerPoint

An exegetical lesson on 1 Samuel 15 – the chapter in which God commanded Saul to completely wipe out the Amalekites, and Saul only partially obeyed. Questions dealt with: 1) How can God be good and command the genocide of an entire nation? 2) How does God view partial obedience? 3) What are the consequences of partial obedience?

07/04/10: “RE:Focus Your Focus” (32:23) PowerPoint

Have you ever felt as if God has placed a call on your life you simply don’t have the ability to fulfill? Moses felt that way, but learned fulfilling God’s call wasn’t about his ability – it was about his availability. Don’t ask, “Am I able?” Instead ask, “Am I available?”

04/18/10: “Celebrate Recovery Principle #5: Voluntarily Submit to Every Change God Wants to Make In You” (25:20) PowerPoint

In preparation for the kickoff of the Celebrate Recovery program through the Lake Merced Church of Christ, the ministry staff preached through all eight of the CR principles based on the Beatitudes. I had the privilege of preaching principle #5 – The Path to V.I.C.T.O.R.Y.

2010 Sonshine State Experience – Gainesville, FL

• 03/21/10: “Staying Power: Christ-Centered Identity” (47:47) PowerPoint; Life Map Handout
• 03/21/10: “How to Lose Your Faith: An Experiment in Evil” (41:49) PowerPoint; Class Outline
• 03/22/10: “Staying Power: Seven Secrets to Staying F.I.R.E.D. U.P.” (43:52) PowerPoint
• To access the three lessons by Buddy Bell, go here.

2010 Tampa Bay Area Men’s Retreat – Tampa, FL

• 2/27/10: “How Does the Gospel Intersect with Everyday Life?” (50:45) PowerPoint; Life Map Handout - highly recommend you follow along with the PowerPoint and utilize the handout while listening.
• 2/28/10: “Taking God & the Gospel of Grace Seriously” (50:03) PowerPoint – major source: Mark Driscoll, Vintage Jesus Lesson 6.
• To access the two lessons presented by Jim Woodell at this retreat, go here.

1/31/2010: “Koinonia” (32:00) PowerPoint

• A lesson on the concept of biblical fellowship from Acts 2:42-47. Presented to the Lake Merced Church of Christ in San Francisco, CA.

01/16/10: “Jesus Took Personal Responsibility” (51:47) PowerPoint; Video 1; Video 2

Lesson presented at Family Vacation 2010. Family Vacation is an annual retreat for mission-minded campus ministries held in Pensacola Beach, FL. Several hundred college students are involved.

10/18/09: “Mission = Compassion; Compassion = Mission” (36:31) PowerPoint

Ever study the Parable of the Minas in Luke 19? Jesus expects His followers to put the Gospel to work until He comes back. Those who are faithful in this will be rewarded, and those who aren’t will have their reward taken away. Hell is a real place, and those who live as enemies of God will go there. Jesus followers shouldn’t be driven by fear and dread of having our reward taken away to reach out, we should be driven by compassion as Jesus was. You can’t talk about mission without talking about compassion – if you miss compassion, then you’ve missed the proper motivation for mission.

09/20/09: “God is Good IF: A Journey Into Malcontent” (33:23) PowerPoint

“This is my story, this is my Psalm” – that sentence sums up my feelings about Psalm 73. I’ve been intimately connected with this chapter of Scripture since I was 22 years of age, and it was a pleasure presenting this sermon to the Lake Merced Church of Christ in San Francisco, CA. While Psalm 73 was very familiar to me already, I did find Tim Smith’s lesson very helpful in my preparation and drew from it more than once in my own - I encourage you to give his sermon a listen too.

07/26/09: “Taming the Tongue” (33:43) PowerPoint

A lesson on James 3:1-12.

07/19/09: “Christ in the City” (39:00)

Stories about our ministry in San Francisco, and a look at the strategic value of supporting evangelistic works targeting major cities. Shared with the Downtown Church of Christ in Searcy, AR.

2009 Campus Ministry United Workshop – Harding University

• 07/09/09: “2009 Workshop Kickoff & Ministry Planter Interviews” (31:09)
• 07/11/09: “Fundraising: Seven Principles Behind Effective Fundraising for Ministry Planters” (36:41)
• - Fundraising Class Notes Outlining 7 Principles
• - Example Fundraising DVD
• - Example Fundraising PowerPoint
• - Sample Fundraising Info Packet
• 07/11/09: “Fundraising: Group Discussion on Fundraising for Smaller Events” (34:00)

06/21/09: “Faith IN Works or Faith THAT Works” (26:29) PowerPoint

James 1:21-25 and James 2:14-26 are dealt with. Questions that are asked: 1) What is faith? 2) The Bible says we can’t earn our salvation – does that mean God doesn’t really expect much from me?

05/17/09: “What Does It Mean To Live a Jesus-Centered Life?” (31:00) PowerPoint

Exegetical lesson covering Philippians 3. You’ll want to view the powerpoint along with this one.

03/08/09: “Four Characteristics God Wants to See In Your Church” (35:00) PowerPoint

An exegetical/thematic lesson based on Ephesians 2:1-3:11.

1 Corinthians Series (As available)

These are all “boring” exegetical sermons. :p

• 02/15/09: 1 Corinthians 1 - ”Intro to Corinth & 1 Corinthians 1″ (34:09)
• 03/08/09: 1 Corinthians 3 – “Unity Requires Maturity” () PowerPoint
• 03/15/09: 1 Corinthians 4 – “Whip Crackin’ or Gently Lovin’?” () PowerPoint
• 03/22/09: 1 Corinthians 5- “He’s doing WHAT with his step-mom?!?!?” () PowerPoint
• 04/19/09: 1 Corinthians 7:1-24 – “Sex, Hugs, & Self-Control pt. 1″ () PowerPoint
• 04/26/09: 1 Corinthians 7:25-40 – “Sex, Hugs, & Self-Control pt. 2″ () PowerPoint
• 05/17/09: 1 Corinthians 8 – “Give me liberty, and give YOU death?” () PowerPoint
• 05/24/09: 1 Corinthians 9 – “Six Characteristics of an Effective Church Leader” () PowerPoint
• 05/31/09: 1 Corinthians 10:1-22 – “Dear Corinthians, Please Do Not Be Stupid” () PowerPoint
• 06/14/09: 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:16 – “What Does the Bible Say About Gender Roles?” ()

10/26/08: “Hero” (32:41) PowerPoint

This sermon was delivered to the Austin Avenue Church of Christ in central Texas. I love superheroes and have collected comic books since I was a little kid. I believe there’s a reason people have spent $10 billion going to superhero movies within the past few years, and I don’t believe it has anything to do with spandex. In this lesson I help the church take a closer look at the connections we ought to be helping people make in a culture obsessed with superheroes. Special thanks to Harding University’s Dr. England and Dr. Neller for supplying me with some of the material used in this presentation.

10/5/08: “What’s the Biggest Problem in the World?” (30:45) PowerPoint

This sermon was delivered to the Austin Avenue Church of Christ in central Texas. Four WCW blog posts correspond to this lesson: 1) What’s the Biggest Problem in the World, 2) The Top Ten Biggest Problems on Earth According to Secular Society,  3) How the Bible Points Out the Biggest Problem in the World – Old Testament, and 4) How the Bible Points Out the Biggest Problem in the World - New Testament. The beginning of this lesson is fairly visually driven, and I highly recommend downloading the PowerPoint to view while listening.

07/10/08: “What Makes a Ministry Evangelistically Effective?” (53:47) (PowerPoint; Characteristics Handouts)

This lesson was presented at the 2008 Campus Ministry United Workshop held on the campus of Harding University. In it, key characteristics of evangelistic ministries are highlighted (based on several months of research sponsored by CMU). The findings presented in this lesson serve as the basis for a ministry evaluation tool (in development), as well as a textbook on effective campus ministry to be published in the future. I highly recommend following along with the PowerPoint presentation as this lesson is highly driven by it’s content.

11/16/07: “God with a little g” Introductory Video - “God with a little g” audio (17:02) (PowerPoint)

“God with a little g” was presented to the Downtown Church of Christ in Searcy, AR, in November of 2007. The introductory video includes interviews I performed with a few students I spoke with at SFSU, and highlight the prevailing pluralistic attitude found in the city and on the campus. The sermon is about the exclusivity of Christ, and how pluralism simply isn’t compatible with the gospel message.