Sermons A People Sought Out Stephen Bedard, December 24, 2023December 24, 2023 Isaiah 62:6-12 Introduction I want you to think about a time that you really felt loved. I don’t mean that you just understood the fact of it on an intellectual level but when you actually felt it inside of you. It could have been from a spouse, a parent, a… Continue Reading
Sermons Let Love Be Sincere Stephen Bedard, September 3, 2023September 3, 2023 Romans 12:9-21 Introduction As young people are returning to school, my mind is drawn to my experience of attending university for my undergraduate degree. I really had no idea what I wanted to study but I applied for history. At the very last minute, perhaps thirty-five years ago this week,… Continue Reading
Sermons Love in Action Stephen Bedard, October 30, 2022October 30, 2022 1 John 3:11-24 Introduction When you think of October 31, what first comes to mind? While many people think immediately of Halloween, for many people that day is remembered as Reformation Day. On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther, who was an Augustinian monk and a theology professor, nailed his 95… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog What Does Christian Love Look Like? Stephen Bedard, October 21, 2022October 21, 2022 I have been thinking a lot about the role of love in the Christian life and what that looks like. Two different things have been bringing this together. One is preaching through 1 John at our church and the other is some Twitter interactions with some very conservative evangelicals. It… Continue Reading
Sermons A More Christ-like Church Stephen Bedard, October 16, 2022October 16, 2022 1 John 2:3-11 Introduction Someone comes to you and asks “How do I be a Christian?” What do you say? You might say something like “believe in Jesus” which is a great start. But what is someone actually asking when they say “How do I be a Christian?” Are they… Continue Reading
Sermons Love is the Key Stephen Bedard, July 31, 2022July 31, 2022 1 John 4:7-21 Introduction A couple was getting married. The bride wished her pastor could be there but he lived too far away. He was asked if he wanted to send a message to be read at the reception. He wanted to have read: “There is no fear in love…. Continue Reading
Sermons Love is the Foundation Stephen Bedard, June 12, 2022June 12, 2022 1 Corinthians 13 Introduction In my experience, there are two types of people who tell stories. There are those with the laser focus that want to take us on as direct a route as possible from point A to point B. They will share the necessary details but only as… Continue Reading
Sermons Love in Action Stephen Bedard, December 19, 2021December 21, 2021 Micah 5:2-5 Introduction We are very familiar with Christmas but is it possible that we are too familiar with it? Is the story so well known that we have stopped thinking about actually took place. Here is how I understand what happened. God created the world, including humanity. Humanity rebelled… Continue Reading
Sermons Jesus: The Love-Giver Stephen Bedard, December 13, 2020February 8, 2022 John 13:34-35 Introduction I have a love-hate relationship when it comes to tradition. On one hand, I really love tradition. It may be connected with my appreciation for history, including church history. There is so much that we can learn from the past and tradition is an excellent way of… Continue Reading
Leadership and Ministry Blog 31 Days to Become a Better Pastor: Love Your Congregation Stephen Bedard, March 3, 2018April 2, 2020 The two most important things a pastor needs to do is to love God and love people. Often the loving of God comes easier than the love for people. Some people are easier to love than others. What does it mean for us to love our congregations? It doesn’t necessarily… Continue Reading
C.S. Lewis and Friends Blog What C.S. Lewis Can Teach Us About True Love Stephen Bedard, April 24, 2017April 24, 2018 Love is one of the highest values of our culture. It is the subject of countless songs and stories. But what do we mean by love? Zachary Krueger turns to C.S. Lewis for wisdom on the nature of love. So I brewed a pot of coffee (the natural starting point of… Continue Reading
Sermons Advent Four: Love Stephen Bedard, December 19, 2016September 30, 2019 This is sermon based on 1 John 4:7-12 that I preached at the Spanish congregation at Queen Street Baptist Church. Introduction In addition to my role as a pastor at Queen Street Baptist Church, I also teach the New Testament at Tyndale University College. There are a number of differences… Continue Reading
Sermons Tough Love: What Does It Mean To Love Our Enemies? Stephen Bedard, April 4, 2016May 21, 2020 A sermon based on Luke 6:27-36 and preached at Queen Street Baptist Church. Introduction I don’t think that I need to preach too hard on the importance of love. I’m sure that there are very few people who would argue that love is unimportant. A random search for quotes on love… Continue Reading
Sermons All You Need is Love Stephen Bedard, February 15, 2016May 22, 2020 A sermon preached at Queen Street Baptist Church based on 1 John 4:7-12. Introduction If we were to tune into a random radio station, how long do you think it would take for us to hear the word ‘love’? How long would it take for us to hear it a… Continue Reading
Personal Blog Got My Good News! Stephen Bedard, September 6, 2015April 11, 2022 I was giving great thought to what I should share for my weekly good news post. Our family is still going through a difficult time. I am still in the process of finding a full-time job. The end of August to the beginning of September is our tightest time. What… Continue Reading
Sermons Faith Test: Love Stephen Bedard, June 22, 2015September 9, 2019 1 John 2:7-11; 3:11-20 Introduction Last time we discovered that one of the tests for faith is that of sin. However, Christianity is not as simple as just avoiding sin. Christianity is much more complex. Christianity is also about love. How much is Christianity about love? I would argue that… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Apologetics and Love Stephen Bedard, March 18, 2015May 24, 2019 Sean McDowell shares about apologetics and love from the Stand to Reason Conference. Continue Reading
She is My Valentine Stephen Bedard, February 14, 2015October 20, 2016 One this Valentine’s Day I want to ask, How do you know when it is love? The emotions are great. I remember our wedding day and seeing Amanda walking down the aisle. What a beautiful bride! We definitely have had our fun times. We have had the opportunity to travel… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Devotions: 2 Thessalonians Stephen Bedard, February 8, 2015August 5, 2019 A devotion based on 2 Thessalonians 1:3. A thanksgiving was a normal part of an ancient letter. Paul took what was a routine section of a letter and infused it with meaning. When Paul says “Thank God,” he is not just being polite, he is really thanking God. He had… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog 5 Ways That Christianity is Unique Stephen Bedard, September 19, 2014May 12, 2020 The uniqueness of Christianity One of the most common claims is that all religions are the same. This is incredibly false. Each religion has its own claim to being unique. Here are five ways in which Christianity is unique. 1. Christianity is falsifiable. Did the Buddha achieve enlightenment? Did Muhammed… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Heart vs. Head Stephen Bedard, August 28, 2014September 14, 2019 One of the reasons people don’t want to be involved in apologetics is that they do not want to have a intellectual faith. If they had to choose between a head faith and a heart faith, they would go with the heart. But the point is that you do not… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Devotions: Jonah Stephen Bedard, August 24, 2014October 1, 2019 A devotion based on Jonah 4:2. Jonah is known for being the prophet swallowed by a fish. However, the most significant part of the book occurs near the end. Jonah had been hoping for the destruction of the people of Nineveh only to be disappointed by God’s grace. Can you… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Atheism and the Problem of Love Stephen Bedard, June 24, 2014August 28, 2019 Atheism claims to have reason on its side. I think that is an incredible overstatement. However, I would like to look at something else. How do atheists explain love? According to atheists, love is just a chemical reaction in the brain that has evolved to allow the species to continue…. Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Karl Barth on Grace Stephen Bedard, February 1, 2014August 23, 2019 When God loves, revealing His inmost being in the fact that He loves and therefore seeks and creates fellowship, this being and doing is divine and distinct from all other loving to the extent that the love of God is grace. Grace is the distinctive mode of God’s being in… Continue Reading
Sermons The Power of Love Stephen Bedard, October 22, 2012January 1, 2020 Romans 12 Introduction There are many things that people of different religions and philosophies disagree on but there is one thing that almost everyone agrees on: the importance of love. It doesn’t matter of you are a Christian or an atheist or any other belief system, people instinctively know that… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Love and Power Stephen Bedard, September 17, 2011July 18, 2020 I recently had a conversation with someone about what it means for God to be all-powerful and all-loving. Since I don’t want this to be just buried in the comments section, I thought I would bring up the main points here. First of all, I have to say that there… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Apologetics of Love Stephen Bedard, August 18, 2011July 27, 2020 It is always a fair question to ask: Why Christianity? Why choose to be a Christian rather than adopt any other worldview? I can see a number of good reasons but there is one that I would like to focus on here. When we think of other religions or philosophies,… Continue Reading
Apologetics and Theology Blog Sermon on the Mount Part Two Stephen Bedard, June 29, 2011July 27, 2020 “Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison.Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the… Continue Reading
Leadership and Ministry Blog A Hymn of Love for Leaders Stephen Bedard, January 17, 2009October 29, 2020 Something else that I enjoyed from James Lawrence’s Growing Leaders is this hymn loosely based on 1 Corinthians 13. If I cast a vision with the tongues of people and angels, but lead without the love of God at my core, I am a ringing cell phone or worse, a… Continue Reading