Paul Hicks – Mackay Church of Christ

Building Kingdoms – Week 1

What kingdom are we building with our lives?

As we begin our new sermon series, Building Kingdoms, Pastor Paul explores a challenging question from Jeremiah 12:5: “If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses?”

Jeremiah brings an honest complaint to God, asking why the wicked seem to prosper while those who seek to follow God continue to struggle. God’s response is not simply to comfort Jeremiah, but to challenge him to something greater.

We can easily become focused on building our own kingdoms — our careers, families, finances, comfort and plans — while forgetting that God has called us to something greater: building His Kingdom.

This message challenges us to move beyond a comfortable, ordinary faith and to trust God for the strength to run with the horses and live with the lions. God doesn’t call us because we have all the skills we need; He calls us to be available and willing to step outside our comfort zone.

As a church, we are also challenged to look beyond ourselves and become more involved in the ways God is already working through our community ministries.

Watch the message or listen to the audio below and consider where God may be calling you to stop building your own kingdom and start building His.

As we begin a new year, this message invites us to live with confidence in God’s grace and forgiveness, and to step forward in our journey of discipleship by learning to follow the Spirit of God.

Pastor Paul reflects on the assurance we have in Christ — freedom from guilt, acceptance as God’s beloved children, and the call to live transformed lives shaped not by achievement, but by grace. Drawing from the book of Acts, this sermon explores how the Holy Spirit leads, empowers, challenges, and reshapes us as followers of Jesus.

This message also introduces the January focus of our discipleship journey: walking in the Spirit. Through biblical teaching, practical imagery, and personal challenges, we are encouraged to open our lives to God’s leading, grow in the fruits of the Spirit, and become a clearer reflection of Christ in a broken world.

Watch the message or listen to the audio below and join us as we step into a new year, seeking to follow the Spirit together.