VISIT US:
36 East Victoria St.
Santa Barbara
FOLLOW US:

Designed for Praise

Bible Text: Psalm 96 | Preacher: Reed Jolley | Series: Psalms

We are designed by God for praise. Praising God is both our duty and our supreme delight.
Psalm 96

Oh sing to the Lord a new song;

    sing to the Lord, all the earth!

Sing to the Lord, bless his name;

    tell of his salvation from day to day.

Declare his glory among the nations,

    his marvelous works among all the peoples!

For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;

    he is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,

    but the Lord made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him;

    strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,

    ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!

Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;

    bring an offering, and come into his courts!

Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;[a]

    tremble before him, all the earth!

10 

Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!

    Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;

    he will judge the peoples with equity.”

11 

Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;

    let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

12 

    let the field exult, and everything in it!

Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy

13 

    before the Lord, for he comes,

    for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world in righteousness,

    and the peoples in his faithfulness.

The Cry For Justice

Bible Text: Psalm 7 | Preacher: Derek Rishmawy | Series: Psalms

The gospel points us to the justice of God in Christ, which both affirms our heart’s cry for justice, tempers our unjust ways of seeking it, and justifies even unjust sinners such as ourselves.

Psalm 7
A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite.

 O Lord my God, in you do I take refuge;

    save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,

lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,

    rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.

O Lord my God, if I have done this,

    if there is wrong in my hands,

if I have repaid my friend with evil

    or plundered my enemy without cause,

let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,

    and let him trample my life to the ground

    and lay my glory in the dust. Selah

Arise, O Lord, in your anger;

    lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;

    awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.

Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;

    over it return on high.

The Lord judges the peoples;

    judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness

    and according to the integrity that is in me.

Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end,

    and may you establish the righteous—

you who test the minds and hearts,

    O righteous God!

My shield is with God,

    who saves the upright in heart.

God is a righteous judge,

    and a God who feels indignation every day.

If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword;

    he has bent and readied his bow;

he has prepared for him his deadly weapons,

    making his arrows fiery shafts.

Behold, the wicked man conceives evil

    and is pregnant with mischief

    and gives birth to lies.

He makes a pit, digging it out,

    and falls into the hole that he has made.

His mischief returns upon his own head,

    and on his own skull his violence descends.

I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness,

    and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.

 

Glory and Gratitude

Bible Text: Psalm 36:1-12 | Preacher: Reed Jolley | Series: Psalms

Psalm 36 invites us to glorify God by living lives of gratitude
Psalm 36

Transgression speaks to the wicked

deep in his heart;

there is no fear of God

before his eyes.

For he flatters himself in his own eyes

that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.

The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit;

he has ceased to act wisely and do good.

He plots trouble while on his bed;

he sets himself in a way that is not good;

he does not reject evil.

Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens,

your faithfulness to the clouds.

Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;

your judgments are like the great deep;

man and beast you save, O LORD.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!

The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

They feast on the abundance of your house,

and you give them drink from the river of your delights.

For with you is the fountain of life;

in your light do we see light.

Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you,

and your righteousness to the upright of heart!

Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,

nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

There the evildoers lie fallen;

they are thrust down, unable to rise. 

 

Two Kinds of People

Bible Text: Psalm 112 | Preacher: Jason Walch | Series: Psalms

 The life lived in light of the Lord’s grace is wise, generous and full of trust in God.

Psalm 112

Praise the Lord!
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
    who greatly delights in his commandments!

His offspring will be mighty in the land
    the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are in his house,
    and his righteousness endures forever.

Light dawns in the darkness for the upright;
    he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

It is well with the man who deals generously and lends;
    who conducts his affairs with justice.

For the righteous will never be moved;
    he will be remembered forever.

He is not afraid of bad news;
    his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.

His heart is steady; he will not be afraid,
    until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor;
    his righteousness endures forever;
    his horn is exalted in honor.

The wicked man sees it and is angry;
    he gnashes his teeth and melts away;
    the desire of the wicked will perish!

Can I Trust You?

Bible Text: Psalm 23 | Preacher: Matthew Trexler | Series: Psalms

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2     He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

3     He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

    for his name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

    I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

    your rod and your staff,

    they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me

    in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

    my cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

    all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.