The Weekly Word from Burns

How do we speak to a world that doesn't know the Bible? We follow Paul's example in Athens. In this sermon, we explore Acts 17 and the art of finding "good dreams" in our culture that point to the true story of Jesus. We discuss how even a simple story like Rudolph can remind us of the One who was "despised and rejected by men" yet chosen by God to save the world.
Join us for this study on Acts 17 and Isaiah 53.

This week, join Chuck Ramseur, James Hinkle, Greer Hinson, and Matthew Hiatt was we look at how one of the world's most popular Christmas songs (a song that was actually written about the second coming) points us to Jesus!

Plato once said that if you want to change the laws of a state, you first change its music. Every December, our culture instinctively changes its playlist. From Mariah Carey to Bing Crosby, we fill the airwaves with songs that—whether they realize it or not—reveal a deep hunger for the Incarnation.
In this first episode of our new series, Christmas Playlist, we look at a carol written in 1849, a year defined by war, political tension, and the frantic gold rush. In the midst of that chaos, Edmund Sears wrote "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear." It is a hymn that challenges us to do the one thing the holidays often make impossible: "Hush the noise."
Are you shouting over the stress of the season, or are you quiet enough to hear the angels sing?

Ezekiel has been a hard road. We've seen wheels within wheels, dry bones, and difficult prophecies. It feels like a book that is miles away from the grace of the New Testament. But what if we told you that Ezekiel is actually full of Jesus?
In the finale of our Strange Faithfulness series, we are connecting the dots between the prophet in exile and the Savior of the world. We explore why they share the title "Son of Man," what the massive vision of the Temple actually means for us today, and how a valley of dry bones preaches the resurrection.
Ezekiel ends with a powerful name for the city of God: Jehovah Shammah—"The Lord is There." It turns out, Ezekiel’s strange journey was always pointing us toward Immanuel. Join us as we see how God strengthens His people and promises to never leave them.

The Power of the Turn (Ezekiel and Repentance)
What do you do when you miss your exit in life? Do you keep driving and hope for the best, or do you stop and recalculate?
The word "repentance" often feels intimidating, but the Prophet Ezekiel had a simpler word for it: Turn.
This week we strip away the religious confusion about a "church word" and see repentance as not a punishment or a one-time event, but a radical directional change that leads to life.
In this episode, you will learn:
Why repentance is not the same as "I'm sorry I got caught" or trying to "un-ring a bell."
The difference between restitution (Zaccheus) and the true heart of the turn (the Prodigal Son).
Why C.S. Lewis called saw repentance as more like a physics equation than an arbitrary checklist item.
How we, as individuals and as a community, need to stop and check our direction to walk toward God's promises.
If you feel stuck or worry about mistakes you can’t undo, this message is your roadmap to finding the path back home.
Press play and learn how to make the critical turn toward life.

What is the "Good News" that can feel like "Bad News"?
In this powerful message from Ezekiel 18, Matthew tackles a tough Biblical tension: personal accountability vs. generational sin.
The exiled Israelites had a popular proverb: "The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge." They believed they were paying the price for their ancestors' mistakes.
But God says, "No more."
Discover the core truth of Ezekiel 18:
The Good News: God holds every soul responsible for their own choices, freeing you from carrying your family's guilt.
The Bad News: If we are all individually accountable, who among us is truly righteous?
The Ultimate Good News: Why God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked and how the path of repentance—fully realized in Christ—offers immediate and eternal life.
We close with the true story of a soldier who fought a war for 30 years after it ended, urging us to stop neglecting the good news that is already ours.
Don't live another day fighting a battle that Christ has already won. Tune in and embrace the radical mercy of God.
Scripture References: Ezekiel 18, Exodus 20:5, Romans 3:10-23, James 2:10

Giving bad news is a heavy burden, one that shatters a person's world into a "before and after." But it is sometimes the most essential message we can receive.
This week, we confront the raw, uncomfortable message of the prophet Ezekiel. Empowered by God's Spirit, Ezekiel had to deliver a terrifying, undeniable diagnosis to Israel: their wickedness was the source of their pain, and judgment was at their door.
Join us as we explore the extremes God used to get their attention, including:
The Bizarre Sign Acts: Lying immobile for over a year, a terrifying recipe for bread, and a public haircut that was an instant call to the police.
The Shocking Parable: A close look at the "R-rated" allegory of Ezekiel 16, which depicts God's people as an abandoned infant rescued by love, who then descends into unspeakable betrayal and moral cancer.
The Mirror of Judgment: We confront the hard truth of Ezekiel 16:49, which reveals Sodom's core sins—pride, excess, and neglect of the poor—and asks how our modern world compares.
Ezekiel shows us that denying the bad news only makes things worse. This is a challenging message that holds nothing back, but only when we truly understand the severity of our condition can we be brought, like the prodigal son, to our senses—and to the speechless grace God offers on the other side.
Press play if you’re ready to hear the truth that leads to life.
Scripture Focus: Ezekiel 3–16

Where does God hang out? (Hint: Not just church.) Who does he hang out with? (Hint: Not just "church people.") What does he really look like? (Hint: Not Gandalf.)
Many of our ideas about God are too small, too safe, and just plain wrong.
This Sunday, we're letting Ezekiel 1 be a "wrecking ball" to our bad theology. Join us as we kick off a new sermon series on the majorly weird (and majorly important) prophet, Ezekiel.

What do joining the military, becoming a citizen, and starting a new job all have in common? They all have an "initiation ritual"—a swearing-in ceremony.
Following Jesus is no different. We call it baptism.
While it's easy to get lost in arguments about how, when, or why it's done, this message reminds us of the one thing every Christian group agrees on: it's the powerful, beautiful, and essential step of belonging. Discover how baptism is a story that didn't start in the New Testament, but at the dawn of creation, and what it means to "put on Christ" and walk in newness of life.
Listen to move past the arguments, rediscover the biblical power of baptism as a symbol of unity and new life, and find grace-filled answers to practical questions like, "Do I have to be perfect?" and "What if I'm not sure I 'did it right'?"

"How long, O Lord?" From the brokenness of our world to the secret doubts in our own hearts, we all ask this question.
This week, Chuck Ramseurs takes a magnifying glass to Psalm 13 and the confession of a struggling believer: "I am no longer sure I am in Jesus... I just don't know anymore."
By examining Jesus' own struggle in the wilderness (Luke 4) and his controversial praise for the foreign widow and the Syrian general Naaman, this sermon forces us to confront a vital question: To whom, or to what, do we truly pledge our allegiance?
Discover the difference between simple belief and a costly, all-in devotion. Learn why a Samaritan woman's faith and a Syrian's allegiance were praised by Christ—and how God's own radical, unwavering allegiance to you means His grace is bigger than your hang-ups.
Listen in for a powerful reminder that your doubts, failures, and misunderstandings are covered, and your true security is found not in perfect knowledge (orthodoxy) or perfect practice (orthopraxy), but in a surrendered heart.