December 25, 2011: Merry Christmas!

Happy birthday, Jesus! We worship you, we praise you, and we thank God that You came down most humbly, born in a manger. For those who are born again, for those who exalt Jesus as Lord in their everyday lives, we know we shall be with you forever, because of the price you paid for our sins...for those who believe. And for those who do not, consider Christ. Do not be swayed by talk of myths or those who say he has not risen...Jesus most certainly has! So on this sunny and unseasonably mild Christmas morning, we celebrate what you have done, and we wanted to wish you a happy birthday. Our entire Christmas service is found by clicking on the link below; it's in two parts. I hope you will be blessed by it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

http://www.archive.org/details/Christmas2011AtGraceFreeLutheranChurch

December 18, 2011: Peace in Christ

Pastor Michael Hodge continued his series on true peace, with Peace in Christ. We hope you enjoy his sermon.
Today, we also have a number of special things for you to listen to:
1. Kaelynn Clark sang Silent Night;
2. Katherine Spencer sang O Little Town Of Bethlehem
3. The Sunday School had their Christmas program tonight. This
has been added as well. Enjoy! All of this can be found
right here:

http://www.archive.org/details/TruePeaceFoundInChrist

A short video clip from the Christmas program thanks to our
sound guy is here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAUylVcSy0o

December 11, 2011: God supplies your needs

Steve Jameson from Freedom Lutheran Church was our guest speaker today. His sermon, on God always supplying your needs, was taken straight from Matthew 14, verses 13-35. When Jesus fed the 3,000, there was more than enough to feed everyone. Mr. Jameson reminds us to expect miracles when things seem impossible. Be blessed by his sermon on this seasonably cold but sunny Sunday morning.
Listen to it here:

http://www.archive.org/details/GodAlwaysSuppliesYourNeeds

December 4, 2011: God's love this Christmas season

Today, Pastor Michael Hodge shared about God's love this Christmas season. You can find his sermon right here!

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorHodgeAndGodsLove

November 27, 2011: Don't quit. We have hope in Christ!

Today, Pastor Michael Hodge continues the study of the Word of God. His sermon today talks about how we can have hope in the midst of no hope, no matter how bad our circumstances are.

We had a few audio issues with the sermon today due to it being very dry in the church (the air, not the Pastor! ;-) ). Something I (Gilbert) will need to work on. In the meantime, be patient...this sermon is very good in spite of an occasional crackling sound during the sermon.

By request, we've also put two other portions of the service online. The lighting of the Advent candle this year is being done by families, and this week, it was the Blobaum's turn. Shawn and Molly read the Scriptures today, and Shawn lit the candle.

Finally, we had special music. Roger and Leslie Seldal, accompanied by Karen Hannan on vocal and piano, sang "The Rose of Bethlehem". We hope you are blessed by it.

All of these can be found right here:

http://www.archive.org/details/DontQuitThereIsHopeInChrist

November 20, 2011: Galatians 5: Freedom in Christ

When we think of freedom, we think of being free from oppression. But as a believer in Christ, we are free from the bondage and oppression of sin! Pastor Michael Hodge expounds on several verses in Galatians 5 in his sermon this morning, showing how the Galatians were being enslaved to the law, and how the Apostle Paul tells them...and us...that salvation cannot be earned, it is by faith alone, in Christ alone.

You can listen to the entire sermon here:

http://www.archive.org/details/Galatians5FreedomInChrist

November 13, 2011: The absolute, unchanging Word of God

Pastor Michael Hodge continues in Galatians 4 talking about the absolute, unchanging Word, and the Gospel. In this world that calls black white and white bloack, and things are all murky...the Apostle Paul, speaking under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, reminds us that the Gospel is unchanging, and will remain unchanged thorugh history. And, it is so important to tell the truth, proclaiming the Gospel correctly, no matter what the cost.

Mark Fagerstrom shared our children's sermon this morning.

But first...our special music was by Karen Hannan and the Seldals, signing, "I can only imagine".

Hear all of these by clicking right here:
http://www.archive.org/details/GodsUnchangingWordThroughHistory

November 6, 2011: False teachers

Today, Pastor Michael Hodge blessed us on this cloudy Communion Sunday with his sermon on false teachers, and how to recognize them. He gives examples of how people were lead astray in the past, and how to prevent it from happening to us.
You can listen to his sermon here:

http://www.archive.org/details/FalseTeachersAndHowToRecognizeThem

And thank you all as we worked hard over the last few months to put our audio problems behind us. :-)

October 30, 2011: The storms of life

Some say Christian living should always be in happiness. While it should always be in joy, Jesus promised us that we would face many storms in life. As the clouds were about to rain on us outside the church, Pastor Michael Hodge teaches us that the storms in our lives can be used for God's glory and grow us...even in the midst of tragedy, as Pastor Hodge himself experienced last week. Listen to his encouraging sermon here:
http://www.archive.org/details/TheStormsOfLife_969

We're still having very minor audio issues, but the worst is definitely behind us, and we're working on cleaning up the slight hissing ASAP. Thanks for your patience!

October 23, 2011: Slavery in the Law, but freedom in Christ

Before our sermon, our special music was the men's quartet singing "Have A Little Talk With Jesus". After that, Pastor Michael Hodge delivered our sermon on this mostly sunny and seasonably mild morning entitled "The Challenge Of Slavery To The Law, And The Benefit Of Freedom In Faith". We hope it challenges you in your walk with Christ as you listen to it. The sermon can be found here:

http://www.archive.org/details/TheChallengeOfSlaveryToTheLawAndTheBenefitOfFreedomInFaith

We were tweaking our new microphone during the sermon, so there are moments of very brief ringing in the sound (which I heard and fixed). Hopefully, this will be the last of our sound issues. Now, learn from the preaching of Christ crucified, as we proclaim it here.

October 16, 2011: Our worldview: what is it?

On this morning, Pastor Michael Hodge tells us more than just where we came from: you need to have a Biblical worldview. You can listen to his sermon here:

http://www.archive.org/details/October162011WhereDidWeComeFrom

October 9th, 11: Romans 9

This morning, Michael Hodge delivered a sermon on Romans 9. Talking about how the apostle Paul was bound to his people, he explains how this affects us today. To her the sermon, please go to:

http://www.archive.org/details/Romans9PastorMichaelHodge

Note: We had a few audio difficulties that will be taken care of in the next two weeks.
We apologize for the inconvenience.

October 2, 2011: The awesomeness of God

This morning, the sun was shining brightly (for a change). And so was, and is, God. This morning, Pastor Michael Hodge, preparing uss for Communion, gave a sermon on "The Awesomeness of God". It says it all...He is most certainly awesome! Listen to his sermon by clicking on the following link.
http://www.archive.org/details/TheAwesomenessOfGod

September 25, 2011: No, I can't hear you!

Hello everyone,

We had two problems with our wireless microphone system this morning which prevented us from recording the service. A dying battery...and a "short" in the wireless unit, which discharged the battery. We have fixed both, and hope to have our sermons back online next week. Sorry about the issues!

September 18, 2011: Right and wrong

What is right? What is wrong? Is it what you feel, is it what God says, or something else? Pastor Hodge tells us how we can be sure to do what is right, with his sermon this rainy Sunday morning. To listen to it, click on the following link!

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorMichaelHodge-RightAndWrong

And we pray you'll get over that cold soon, Pastor Hodge!

September 11, 2011: No audio for our sermon this week

Hello everyone,
We had some technical difficulties that prevented us from recording our sermon this week from Pastor Michael Hodge: "An important message, or is it really important?" on faith and legalism. The audio quality is not good on the recording due to an equipment failure, which has been fixed. We regret the inconvenience and look forward to seeing you next week!

September 4, 2011: The generosity of those who are spiritual

One of the hallmarks or benchmarks of a transformed believer in Christ is increasing generosity. And not one that is legalistic: but from a heart that is changed by the Lord. Are you becoming more generous with your money, time and talents as you walk with Christ? Listen to a convicting and enlightening sermon from Pastor Michael Hodge from this fine Sunday morning, right here:

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorMichaelHodge-GenerosityOfThoseWhoAreSpiritual

Audio engineer: Micah Fagerstrom

August 28, 2011: Forgiveness

Forgiveness is frequently a hard thing to do. But Pastor Hodge today told us where true forgiveness comes from, and how we can obtain it.

His sermon on this topic can be found here:

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorMichaelHodge

August 21, 2011: Roger Scott - is God with us, or not?

Good question - and Roger tackles it head on with Scripture from both Old and New Testaments. Listen to his sermon that he delivered this morning, right here:

http://www.archive.org/details/IsGodWithUsOrNot

August 14, 2011: Sermon on 1 Chronicles by Mark Fagerstrom

Mark Fagerstrom delivered our sermon this morning focusing on 1 Chronicles...describing who God is, and who we are in Him if we believe. Listen and be challenged by downloading this sermon here:

http://www.archive.org/details/GraceFreeLutheranChurch-SermonOn1Chronicles

Pastor Michael Hodge's sermon from last week is unavailable; we apologize for the inconvenience.

July 31, 2011: Change

Change---it's happening in our world constantly these days. New technology coming out at a dizzying pace, new things we learn...but one thing hasn't changed: God. Pastor Michael Hodge explains why this is very important in our ever-changing world.

Also, Molly Blobaum gave our children's sermon today. Listen to both sermons here:

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorMichaelHodge-Change

July 24, 2011: Mark Fagerstrom sermon on Psalm 119:51

This Sunday, Mark delivered a sermon on Psalm 119:51 and subsequent passages. Trials and tribulations haven't changed much in 2000 years, but God's Word tells us how to overcome them. His sermon on that is available at the following link.

http://www.archive.org/details/GraceFreeLutheranDe

July 21, 2011: AFLC Illinois District Bible Camp 2011 sermons now online!

So you were unable to make the AFLC Illinois District Bible Camp this year? We had some great teaching and were challenged to worship, to think Biblically, and put Christ in the center of our lives not only at home, but at our churches. There were some very interesting sermons on Family Integrated Churches as well that are definitely worth a listen. While we can't recreate the experience of fellowship that we had, you can now listen to all the sermons at your convenience online.

Due to technical difficulties, the first evening session of the camp was recorded on 5 different tracks on the CD recorder from Steve Papillion. That sermon, in all 5 pieces, is here:

http://www.archive.org/details/AflcIllinoisDistrictBibleCamp2011

All other sermons from the three camp days, including the Wednesday (7-20-2011) panel discussion on Family Integrated Churches, are available by clicking here:
http://www.archive.org/details/AflcIllinoisDistrictBibleCamp2011-Part2

We hope you find these sermons to be a blessing to you, and challenge how God wants you to live and how he wants Christ's bride to be the church in our present day.

July 10, 2011: Pastor Kent Sperry's final sermon at Grace Free Lutheran DeKalb

Pastor Kent reflected in his 9+ years here at Grace Free Lutheran in a sermon titled "The Call". Listen to this inspiring sermon here:

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorKentsFinalSermonAtGflcDekalb

And a musical farewell was done by Roger Seldal. Listen to that here:

http://www.archive.org/details/PastorKentsFinalGflcDekalbSermon

July 3, 2011: Freedom in Christ

Pastor Michael Hodge delivered our sermon this morning and reminded us what it means to be truly free on this Independence Day weekend. You can hear the sermon here:

http://www.archive.org/details/Freedom-PasterMichaelHodge

June 19, 2011

We often fail in our calling because we don't feel qualified to carry it out.  However, as we see in 1 Corinthians 1, this is how God intends it to be.  He calls and uses those who aren't qualified.  This message can be heard or downloaded at http://www.archive.org/details/KentSperryUnqualified

June 12, 2011

In the church today, we too often fail to expect God to work through us as we serve him.  We don't believe that God will do the miraculous through us.  However, because of God's calling, we should expect him to do great things.  This message can be heard or downloaded at http://www.archive.org/details/KentSperryExpectingGreatThings

Our Sunday sermons from 5/31 and 6/5

June 5th, 2011:

We heard the last message in our series on Christian parenting. We heard how we must find the right balance. Just as we must not be permissive, neither must we provoke our children to anger. We must not do this because it hinders our ability to train them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. It can be heard or downloaded at http://www.archive.org/details/KentSperryRightBalance

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

We heard the third part of our series on Christian parenting. And we learned that discipline is essential if we're to raise godly children. Even though no one enjoys disciplining their children, they do it out of love for their children and out of a desire for their salvation. This message can be heard or downloaded at http://www.archive.org/details/KentSperryDiscipline

Welcome to Grace Free Lutheran Church!

Hello everyone,

Welcome to our new Internet home for our blog. Here you'll find sermons, updates,
and more! Be sure to check back---this is only a test post. When we launch, we'll let you know!