FBC Allen - Sermons

Passage: Mark 10:32-45
What takes top priority in your life? In Week 24 of our Gospel of Mark series, Dr. Paul Michael Vacca walks through "The Priority of the King," examining how Christ calls us to reframe our vision, values, and devotion around His eternal reign.
Streamed live at FBC Allen on August 23, 2026. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and share this message with someone who needs encouragement today!

Passage: Mark 10:13-31
What does it actually cost to follow Jesus? Mark 10 answers that question through three encounters that reveal the true nature of the kingdom of God. When the disciples turned children away from Jesus, they exposed a heart shaped by ambition and a misunderstanding of what the kingdom is. Jesus responded with genuine indignation and declared that the kingdom belongs to those who come with the humble, dependent trust of a child. No one earns their way in. Salvation is received by grace through faith, not achieved through religious performance or spiritual accomplishment.
The story of the rich young ruler brings this into sharp focus. He was moral, sincere, and eager. He came running to Jesus and knelt before Him. But when Jesus identified the idol of his heart and called him to surrender it, he walked away. His wealth had become his god, and he could not follow Jesus while already following something else. Jesus did not soften the message to keep him. He let him go.
This raises a question every person must answer: Is there something that has more of your heart than Jesus does? Financial security, reputation, relationships, comfort, or plans for the future can all become the thing that keeps a person from fully following Him. The rich young ruler's problem was not that he had wealth. It was that his wealth had him.
Jesus promised that no one who surrenders anything for His sake will come up short. What is gained in Christ far outweighs what is given up for Him. The kingdom of God consistently inverts the world's value system. Those the world overlooks are often the very ones who belong in the kingdom. Those who seem like the most obvious candidates sometimes walk away empty.
The way of the kingdom includes both suffering and joy, but Jesus is present through all of it. He has promised never to leave or forsake those who trust in Him. Entering the kingdom is not about what you can do. With men, salvation is impossible. But with God, all things are possible. The door is open to anyone who turns from whatever holds their heart and looks to Jesus Christ, the sinless Savior who died in our place, rose from the grave, and offers life to all who call on His name.

Passage: Mark 10:1-12
What if your marriage was never just about you and another person? From the very beginning, God designed marriage to show the world something about Himself. When the enemy attacks your home, he is not just targeting your relationship. He is targeting the testimony. Is your home pointing people toward Jesus?

Passage: Mark 9:30-50
They were arguing about who was the greatest. Jesus responded by putting a child in the room. What does it look like to walk in true humility? Not low self-esteem. Not thinking less of yourself. Thinking of yourself less because you are genuinely thinking of others more. That is the life Jesus modeled and the life He calls us into.

Passage: Mark 9:14-29
Is there any area of your life where you are trusting God so completely that there is no plan B? Where if He does not come through, it is a failure? Or is everything still something you can manage and control while you talk the Christian talk? The most honest prayer in all of Scripture might be the one you need most right now: Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. God is not waiting for perfect faith. He is waiting for you to bring what you have.

Passage: Mark 8:34-9:13
What if the hardest season of your life is not the end of your story, but the path to something greater? Jesus never spoke about the cross without also speaking about the resurrection. The glory He revealed on that mountaintop was a promise for every believer who follows Him through suffering. The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come. Are you anchoring your hope there?

Passage: Mark 8:27-9:1 
What if the version of Jesus you have been following was shaped more by your expectations than by His actual words? Peter made the greatest confession of faith recorded in Scripture and then, just moments later, was compared to Satan. Not because he stopped believing, but because he tried to tell God how things should go. Jesus is still asking the same question He asked near Caesarea Philippi: Who do YOU say that I am? And your answer changes everything.

God said I will to Abraham. He said I will through Moses. He said I will to David. And He said I will again through Jeremiah. Every single time, He delivered. What would your life look like if you actually took God at His word this week? The covenants of Scripture all share one pattern: God speaks, and His people respond. His faithfulness is not the question. Yours is.

Passage: Psalm 84
What if the problem with your church experience has nothing to do with the music, the seats, or the message? Psalm 84 asks a question most of us avoid: do you actually long for God, or just for what He gives? One day in His presence is better than a thousand anywhere else. Do you believe that? Do you live like it?

Passage: John 13:1-17
Jesus washed the feet of the man who was about to betray Him. He knew exactly what Judas was going to do, and He served him anyway. That single act removes every excuse we have for withholding service from the difficult people in our lives. What would it look like this week to pick up the towel?