James: Through Obedience
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this sermon from James 1, Karl Ihfe challenges the church to move beyond simply hearing God's Word to actually living it out. Resilient faith, he argues, is not built by accumulating Biblical knowledge, but by humbly receiving Scripture and putting it into practice — in our speech, our compassion for the vulnerable, and our holiness. Like the wise builder in Matthew 7, every act of obedience lays another stone in a foundation that will hold when the storms of life arrive.
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Building Resilient Faith: Through Trials
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this opening sermon of a series on James, Karl Ihfe reminds us that resilient faith isn't built in the easy seasons of life — it's forged in the hard ones. Drawing from James 1, Karl challenges us to see our trials not as interruptions to our spiritual growth, but as the very places where God is forming us most deeply. Resilient faith doesn't require us to have all the answers; it requires us to keep trusting who God is, even when we don't understand what He's doing.
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Who We Are: Share Jesus
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this sermon, Karl Ihfe challenges Broadway Church to reimagine what it means to share Jesus — not as a high-pressure sales pitch or a rehearsed argument, but as a natural overflow of a Spirit-attentive, love-filled life. Drawing from John 20, where the risen Jesus commissions his frightened disciples with peace and the Holy Spirit before sending them out, Karl reminds the congregation that ordinary, imperfect believers are still being sent today. He calls the church to pray and pay attention, know and tell the gospel, share stories of God's transforming work, and make the gospel visible...
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Who We Are: Unleash Compassion
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
Jeremy Smith, Broadway Church of Christ's executive minister, unpacks the church's mission to "make God's restoring love visible" by grounding it in a Biblical theology of new creation. Drawing from 1 Corinthians 15 and Acts 2, he argues that God is not discarding the world but restoring it through Jesus Christ, and that the church is called to participate in that restoration. Because of this, unleashing compassion is not a secondary Christian activity — it is the very embodiment of God's kingdom breaking into the present world.
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Who We Are: Build Community
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this sermon, Karl Ihfe unpacks what it truly means to "build community" as part of Broadway's mission to pursue God, build community, unleash compassion, and share Jesus. Drawing from 1 Corinthians 12, Karl reminds the church that every person is an indispensable part of the body of Christ — placed there intentionally by God — and that real community goes far deeper than friendly conversation over coffee. Through four key practices — building relationships across generations and cultures, practicing courageous vulnerability, creating space for everyone to belong and participate, and...
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Who We Are: Pursue God
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this sermon, Karl Ihfe opens a four-week series on Broadway Church's identity and mission, grounding everything in the conviction that God is restoring the world through Jesus Christ and has invited ordinary people to participate. Drawing from John 15, Karl emphasizes that pursuing God isn't about doing more for Him, but about remaining connected to Him — like a branch staying attached to the vine. He walks through four practical ways the church can pursue God: seeking Him daily through Scripture and prayer, gathering faithfully in worship, practicing intentional spiritual disciplines,...
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Behind the Ministry: Hidden Figures
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
Karl Ihfe draws on the largely forgotten apostles — James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Thaddeus — to remind us that recognition and significance are not the same thing. Like Clarence B. Jones, who helped write Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech while standing 50 feet in the background, these three disciples followed Jesus faithfully, left everything, and helped carry the gospel into the world — even though history barely remembers their names. The question they leave us with is not, will people remember me? but rather, will I be faithful to the one who called me?...
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Come and See
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this sermon, Carter Shuman uses the calling of Philip and Nathanael from John 1 to challenge us to lay down our snap judgments and our mental calculations, and simply follow Jesus. Like Nathanael, who doubted anything good could come from Nazareth, and Philip, who tried to do the math on what God could do, we often let our assumptions and limitations define what we believe God is capable of. The invitation Jesus extends to both disciples — and to us — is simple and powerful: come and see. https://bwaychurch.org
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James: Finishing Details
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this sermon, Karl Ihfe draws on the life of James, son of Zebedee, to show that Jesus is not surprised by our immaturity — He is committed to our maturity. Through James' journey from wanting to call down fire on enemies and seeking seats of honor, to ultimately drinking the cup of martyrdom with faithfulness, Karl reminds us that transformation happens in the ordinary, everyday moments of following Jesus. Before God calls us to do anything great, His first invitation is simply, "Will you follow?" https://bwaychurch.org
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Living Water
Broadway Church of Christ Sermon Series
In this co-preached sermon, Tim Talley and his daughter Elizabeth Harrison explore John chapter 4 — the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman — uncovering three defining characteristics of Jesus: intentionality, humility, and radical inclusivity. Together, they challenge the congregation to move beyond surface-level boundary-crossing and allow those boundaries to fully dissolve, just as Jesus modeled. Ultimately, they call the church to share something real and beautiful — not a program or a gimmick, but a living, moving encounter with the Savior of the world.
info_outlineKarl Ihfe opens his sermon with references to the movie Jaws and the dramatic Thai cave rescue to illustrate his central theme: God's rescue operation requires "a bigger boat" because it encompasses far more than individual salvation. Using Exodus 3 as his foundation, Ihfe demonstrates how God heard the collective cries of the Israelites in Egypt and came down to rescue them as a people, not just select individuals. He emphasizes the communal language throughout Scripture, noting how God says "my people" and uses plural pronouns when describing His rescue mission.
Ihfe argues that Western Christianity has become too individualistic, focusing primarily on personal salvation and private relationships with God, while missing the broader communal aspect of God's rescue plan. He points to Jesus' teaching of the Lord's Prayer with "our Father" and "give us our daily bread" as evidence of this communal focus. The sermon connects the Exodus story to Christ's mission, explaining how Jesus came not just for individuals but for the whole world, as stated in John 3:16. Ihfe concludes by challenging the congregation to ask not only "God, rescue me" but "God, rescue us" - addressing collective bondage in their church, community, and culture, including issues of poverty, injustice, racism, and division.