The God You Already Know Acts 17:22–31; John 14:15–21

What if faith is less about finding a distant God and more about becoming awake to the sacred presence that has been with us all along?

In this sermon, Rev. David Wheeler explores a more life-giving way to understand God’s power — not as control from above, but as persuasive love within and surrounding all things. For anyone who has struggled with inherited images of a God who causes, allows, or controls suffering, this message offers another faithful way to imagine God: not distant, not coercive, but near, relational, and always calling creation toward healing, justice, connection, and life.

This is a sermon for the doubting, the deconstructing, the quietly wondering, and anyone still searching for a God who looks like love.

Preached May 10, 2026, at New Covenant Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Oklahoma City, OK.

In this final sermon of our Easter season series, Learning to Trust Again, Rev. David Wheeler reflects on John 14:1–14 and Jesus’ words to troubled disciples: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” Too often, this passage has been used as a weapon or a boundary marker. But in context, Jesus is speaking tenderly to friends who are anxious, confused, and unsure of what comes next.

This sermon explores how trust does not require having the whole map. Instead, when the way ahead is unclear, Jesus gives us a pattern: love made visible. We may not always know what comes next, but we can usually recognize what love requires next.

Scripture: John 14:1–14

Sermon Series: Learning to Trust Again, Part 4 of 4

Scripture: John 10:1–10

In a world full of voices competing for our attention—political, cultural, religious, and digital—how do we know which ones are actually worth trusting? In this message, Rev. David Wheeler explores Jesus’ words in John 10 and the powerful claim that not every voice leads to life. Some voices divide, diminish, and drain us. Others—even when they challenge us—lead to deeper compassion, connection, and wholeness.

This sermon invites us to rethink what “abundant life” really means—not something reserved for the future, but a way of living that begins now. As New Covenant Christian Church marks two years as an Open and Affirming congregation, we reflect on how choosing to trust voices that lead to life has shaped who we are—and who we are still becoming.

The question isn’t just, “Who are you listening to?” It’s: “What are those voices doing to your life?”