In this sermon, Pastor Dave Capoccia examines the prologue of John’s Gospel, John 1:1-18. In this prologue, John gives four arresting identifications of Jesus so that you will pay attention to Jesus as the supreme Word of God. 1. Jesus Is the Wise and Powerful Creator (1:1-5) 2. Jesus Is the True and Ultimate Light…
In this lesson, Pastor Dave Capoccia discusses the seven ecumenical councils of the early and medieval church that sought to clarify what the Bible teaches about the Trinity and the nature of Christ against various emerging heretical beliefs. In many ways, we Christians today still benefit from the pronouncements of these ancient councils, but not…
In this first sermon in a new series going through the Gospel of John, Pastor Dave Capoccia gives an introduction to the Gospel. Pastor Dave explains five main areas of background information that will help you better understand and appreciate the Gospel of John: author, date, origin, purpose, and structure.
In this lesson, Pastor Dave Capoccia discusses the four main heresies affecting the Christian church before the fourth century. Pastor Dave emphasizes how the early church stood on the word handed down from the apostles to defend the faith and how we need to do the same today as we see new forms of the…
In this lesson, Pastor Dave Capoccia discusses how the situation for early Roman Christians transformed dramatically with the emperorship of Constantine. Pastor Dave explains what happened to bring Constantine to power, what Constantine’s policies were toward Christians, and how his policies—and those of his successors—had profound effects on Christianity, both positively and negatively.
In this lesson, Pastor Dave Capoccia examines the persecutions Christians suffered in the first to early fourth centuries. Specifically, Pastor Dave explains: 1. What were the persecutions? 2. Why were Christians persecuted? 3. How did Christians respond to persecution?
In this lesson, Pastor Dave Capoccia begins examining early church history by first discussing the gospel’s expansion in the first four centuries. Pastor Dave explains the extent of gospel expansion, the ways God prepared for this expansion to take place, and the chief means God used to bring about the expansion.
In Lesson 1 of our new Sunday school series on church history and the early church, Pastor Dave Capoccia tackles a fundamental question: Why Study Church History? Pastor Dave first considers what we already know about church history and why we often don’t study it. Pastor Dave then offers three main reasons why we should…
In this sermon, Pastor Dave Capoccia looks at Paul’s teaching about contentment in Philippians 4:10-13. Paul clarifies three parts to the secret of contentment so that you also will find true contentment in Christ. Introduction: Renewed Partnership Brings Joy in the Lord (v. 10) 1. True Contentment Is Learned through Practice (v. 11) 2. True…
In this sermon, Pastor Dave Capoccia finishes examining the spiritual discipline of the church from the Bible. In part 4, Pastor Dave completes looking at the “how” of the discipline of the church and explains the last three of six principles from the Bible to maximize mutual upbuilding in the church. 1. Engage in the…