Sermons — Samuel Mills

You Are Released!

The Bible is a collection of the most fascinating books ever put together. It is filled with drama, action, adventure, romance, mystery, horror, history, poetry, comedy and more. There are many riveting stories to read. We will explore the life of an obscure character named Ahithophel, who was a close friend of King David. Ahithophel had something lurking in the deep recesses of his heart that hindered him from living a fulfilled and successful life.

Ahithophel’s life will teach us the danger of harboring the pain of our past and the importance of experiencing release and freedom. Bitterness begins with a trespass committed to us or because of unfulfilled expectations we have placed on others. Hurts can gradually grow into anger, then into resentment, then to unforgiveness, then into bitterness, then into hatred, which can cause retaliation and finally result in violence.

SermonsSamuel MillsOctober 21, 2018Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Toronto, Jesus, forgiveness, bitterness, resentment, anger, hatred, violence, suicide, bitter, hurt, David, BathshebaComment

Singleness or Marriage: Which is Better?

During an average person’s lifetime, a significant portion of their life will be spent single. Typically, the first 25 years of life and perhaps the last 10-15 years will be spent as a single person. At some point in our lives we are all single. So, how we live as a single will determine how fulfilled we will be even if we get married. Singleness can either be a stage of life or a desired state of life.

At times the grass may seem greener on the other side. Singles may long for a marriage partner to bring happiness, while marrieds may secretly long to be single again to escape any dissatisfaction with their partner. So, what does God say about living single? Is it God’s intention that everyone should pursue marriage? Is it possible that marriages struggle because we have not learned to live our single lives as God intended it to be?

SermonsSamuel MillsAugust 12, 2018Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Toronto, Singleness, Single, Marriage, Married, Lonliness, Jesus, Bible, Alone, Celibacy Comment

Faith vs Science

Many voices today say that science and Christianity are opposed to each other. Some atheists claim that science has debunked religion and many in the general public think that the church is anti-science. And within the church, science is often portrayed as either incompatible with faithor challenging important Christian beliefs.

In Christian belief, God reveals Himself in both the written book of the Bible and the created “book” of the natural world.

Because of the consistent character of God, these two cannot conflict. While sincere Christians differ on their views of the age of the earth and evolution, we all agree on the essentials of the faith: all people have sinned and salvation comes only through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We agree that the God of our salvation is the same God we see in the wonders of His creation. He constantly woos us through what He has made and says, “I exist and I want you to know me!"

How Do I Make Sense of Life?

Canada is a diverse country with people of over 250 ethnic origins. With diversity comes different perspectives on how we see and interpret the world. This is called a worldview. A worldview comprises one's collection of presuppositions, convictions and values from which a person tries to understand the world and life.

Very often we struggle to make sense of life or understand how to interpret and respond to the circumstances we face. Understanding how we form and use our worldview will help us make sense of life’s difficult questions. We will explore topics that may affirm, challenge or change our worldviews.

Can God Trust You?

Most of us spend our lives wondering or questioning if God is trustworthy. Can I depend on Him during difficult moments? Can I trust Him with my life and family? We ultimately realize through Scripture and life experiences that God’s gifts are generous, and His care is constant. However, what if I were to ask you, “Can God trust you?” The answer becomes more difficult. Have we ever thought that God may be looking for people He can trust?

Trust is dependability—a deep confidence in someone. There are three questions we must ask ourselves. First, can God trust me through pain? Second, can God trust me with His provision? Third, can God trustme through prosperity? Genuine discipleship and servanthood is having the strength of character to be entrusted with treasure and still maintain our desire for God through pain or prosperity.

SermonsSamuel MillsJune 17, 2018Samuel Mills, Toronto, The Bridge, Jesus, Trust, Pain, Provision, Prosperity, Can God Trust You?, TreasureComment

When God Seems To Fail Us

Have you ever felt that God has failed you? Have you experienced adversity that overwhelmed you and did not end as you expected?

Adversity visits all of us from time to time. Adversity is universal, impartial, painful, appears suddenly at times, and is often beyond our control. Unfortunately, followers of Jesus often think they are immune toadversity because they come to church, pray, or read the Bible. In order to stay afloat in the oceans of adversity, we must have resolute faith (trust) in God. When facing adversity, faith allows us to see who God is, see our identity as God’s children, and see our present adversity in the light of eternity. Trusting God does not mean that everything will work out to our desired outcome and it may seem that God has failed us; however, our hope that one day God will put everything right through resurrection in the new creation, gives us hope.

SermonsSamuel MillsMarch 25, 2018Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Toronto, Jesus, Failure, Adversity, Hardship, Why God?, Failed, Trust, Faith, PainComment

Labels Lie

The identity that you embrace determines your freedom position. Stop believing the negative labels and start living as God’s beloved. Who are you? It is an important question to ask ourselves and how we answer that question determines whether we are living a free life or not.

Many people have their identity defined by a negative label. We see ourselves as failures and mistakes. We let a bad decision, a negative circumstance or someone else define who we are. Others let work titles or accomplishments define their identity. We package up all of our successes and never show any weakness. We become what the world wants us to be. Some wear religious labels and proclaim their great holiness only to follow in the footsteps of the Pharisees.

The identity that you embrace determines your freedom position. Stop believing the negative labels and start living as God’s beloved. Who are you? It is an important question to ask ourselves and how we answer that question determines whether we are living a free life or not.

SermonsSamuel MillsFebruary 11, 2018Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Jesus, Toronto, Labels, Negative Labels, Bullying, Identity, Child of God, Family, FreedomComment

You're Stronger Than You Think You Are

In order to be free, we must face the fear, lies and unresolved pain by trusting that God is with us and that we are more than conquerors. Jesus invites us to go looking in our story for the broken and busted up things. He wants to take us on a journey where we finally face the things we’ve been scared to deal with. He wants to bring light into our darkness. But the enemy of our freedom uses fear to keep us held captive. He lies to us and uses scare tactics to prevent us from experiencing God’s great plan for our lives. He wants to kill, steal and destroy…everything.

Freedom requires fearlessness; it means we stop believing the lies and trust that God has our best interest in mind. He tells us not to fear, for He is with us. He comforts us and will walk through the valley with us. In order for us to be free, we must have the courage to explore what holds us captive. We have to stop believing the lies and accept God’s truth that we are more than conquerors.

SermonsSamuel MillsJanuary 21, 2018Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Toronto, Jesus, Fear, Freedom, Courage, Captive, Conqueror, ChristianityComment

Do All Religions Lead to God?

We live in a pluralistic culture of people from various backgrounds, ethnicities and religions. We desire and make every attempt to live in peace and harmony with our co-workers, neighbours and friends. Within this diversity comes the idea of religious pluralism—the belief that all religions lead to the same God. It is an assumption that all religions are fundamentally similar and only superficially different.

There are many different worldviews, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, New Age spirituality, etc. How do I know which one is true? How do I determine the correct path to God? Christianity teaches the exclusivity and supremacy of Jesus Christ. So, how is Jesus different from other religious leaders?

Am I A Racist?

With the recent events of Charlottesville, the removal of Confederate statues, NFL players kneeling during the American National Anthem, immigration policies, police shootings, Canada's relationship to its native indigenous people, etc., the topic of racism has taken centre stage in our society. So how should we respond to racism? Are we being influenced by racism in our social interactions within our communities or are we influencing our culture towards unity, inclusion and love? Have our prejudices or stereotypes influenced our mindset about certain people groups?

We will delve into the topic of race and racism and learn what God’s desire is for humanity as we co-exist on earth. We will learn four key steps to deal with racism and how we can promote inclusion, transform institutions and advocate for justice and equality.

SermonsSamuel MillsOctober 15, 2017Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Toronto, Racism, Race, Bigotry, Prejudice, Jesus, Christianity, Stereotypes, Equality

What's in Your Basket?

There are many miracles of Jesus recorded in the gospels but ONLY the miracle of Jesus feeding the 5000 is mentioned across ALL four. There seems to be something significant that the writers were trying to convey. The story focuses on a hungry crowd miraculously provided for through the gift of a young boy. Jesus multiplied five loaves and two fish to feed a massive crowd. Sometimes it’s the small things that make the biggest difference. God is not impressed by how much we have to offer and He is not intimidated or limited by how little we have to offer. All He cares about is that we are offering what we have. We cannot do everything, but we can do something. So, what’s in your basket? In what way can you serve?

SermonsSamuel MillsAugust 20, 2017Samuel Mills, The Bridge, Jesus, Feeding 5000, Serving, Ministry, Toronto, Basket, 5 Loaves, 2 Fish Comment

Where is Your Treasure?

Materialism is the tendency to value material possessions, wealth and physical comforts over God, spiritual values, and kingdom priorities. Jesus exhorted the people to be careful not to put their hope in the world’s wealth. The cultural thought of Jesus’ time equated wealth with spiritual blessing and God’s favour. As a result, people would be caught thinking that material gain was a sign of godliness. [1 Tim. 6:5]

“It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God.” Do you know who said this statement? Yes, it was Jesus. Have you ever wondered what this phrase really means?

Jesus came and radically dispelled the thought process of the people of His day by saying the rich would have a hard time entering God’s kingdom. The people were shocked and the disciples were dumbfounded. How could Jesus say that? He encouraged the people not to store their treasure on earth, but to use it for eternal purposes. Did you know that what we do with our treasure(possessions) demonstrates what we love the most and trust the most?

SermonsSamuel MillsJuly 30, 2017Money, Treasure, Tithing, Giving, Jesus, Samuel Mills, The Bridge, TorontoComment

The Need to Abandon Our Image of God

There is a deep fear inside us in times of trial that we have been abandoned by God. The transforming moment in our Christian walk is when we realize that it was not God who left us, but our image of God.

SermonsSamuel MillsApril 24, 2016Samuel Mills, Image of God, Angry God, God Love, Love, False Image, Why God?Comment

When Reality Contradicts Vision

Are you facing closed doors in your life? Is the vision God gave for your life or ministry seem to contradict your reality? Learn some important principles to understand that possibly your closed doors are actually God's blessings to open new opportunities for your future. When we focus on God's glory, then we won't be disappointed when our vision does not happen exactly as we expected.

SermonsSamuel MillsJune 24, 2015Vision, Reality, Sermon, New Opportunities, Samuel Mills, Acts 16, PaulComment

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