Mother’s Day 2023 | Noel Piepgrass

In Matthew 13 Jesus gives a sermon using parables, short stories with a moral to them.  In verses 10-17, we see Jesus quote a passage from the book of Isaiah which effectively communicates to the audience that his use of parables is the most impactful way to help his audience hear and see the mysteries of the Kingdom.  In this message, Noel goes on to share his own story and invites the listener into the story God is writing over their own lives and over the life of Exeter Valley Church.    

In Matthew 14:22-33 Jesus shows up walking across the sea in the middle of a storm.  In faith, Peter steps out of the boat to come to him but is quickly scared of the wind and waves and begins to sink.  In this moment of desperation he reaches out to Jesus to be saved and Jesus gives him his hand.  Noel Piepgrass shares that the moral of the story is not merely the power of God over the storm, but the way he uses the storm to invoke our worship.   

In the culmination of his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus emphasizes being not just hearers, but doers of his words.  He gives the example of the wise builder who built upon the rock and was sustained through the storm.  Matthew 7:24-27. 

Matthew 16:13-20. Peter confesses Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. By Noel Piepgrass